Equistone sells Meilleurtaux.com to Goldman Sachs

The sale of Equistone's majority stake in the group was finalised on 21 February, according to a company release.

As part of the deal, Goldman Sachs is taking over holding company Finizy, a group providing information, comparison, consulting and intermediation financial services. Its brands include Meilleurtauxsolutions.com, Meilleurtauxpro.com, Meilleureassurance.com, MeilleurtauxMaroc.com and Meilleurbanque.com.

Goldman Sachs invested through the vehicle West Street Capital Partners VII. French publication Les Echos cited a source close to the deal saying a €260m entreprise value was "not an unrealistic value".

Equistone said in a statement that the process attracted more than a dozen potential investors, funds and industrial players, with Goldman Sachs eventually coming out on top.

Previous funding
In November 1999, Natixis Private Equity (via Natixis Ventech) led a €760,000 early-stage round in the company, acquiring a 33% equity stake. The following year, Natixis was joined by Galileo Partners and Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners (EdRip - then known as Compagnie Financiere Edmond de Rothschild) in a second round amounting to €5.49m, through which the backers acquired a combined 53% stake. Galileo provided a FFr 18m investment in the deal.

In 2007, Caisse Nationale des Caisses d'Epargne (CNCE) acquired a 50.14% stake for around €70m, according to unquote" data. The GP increased its stake and delisted the business in 2009, for an overall investment reported to stand at nearly €200m.

Equistone subsequently acquired the group in 2013 from BPCE Group, formed in 2009 by the merger of CNCE and Banque Fédérale des Banques Populaires (BFBP). According to unquote data", the deal valued Meilleurtaux.com at around €20m. Equistone invested through its Fund IV.

Since then the company undertook several acquisitions. It notably bolted on MerciHenri.com, a Lille-based price comparison platform specialised in the health, housing, car and motorcycle insurance sectors, at the end of October.

Company
Founded in 1999, Meilleurtaux.com advises users seeking financial services, with a particular focus on mortgages. The business has partnerships with numerous French retail banks and insurers to provide customers with the best financing advice on credit rates, mortgage loans, insurance, banking and savings. The group manages around 235 agencies in Paris and other French cities. It currently employs 165 people.

In 2015, the company negotiated €7.2bn in new mortgages on behalf of its clients. Meilleurtaux.com reported an EBITDA of €20m in 2016 and €140m in revenues.

People
Equistone – Guillaume Jacqueau (managing partner).

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