BDC's Anaveo buys Azman from Initiative & Finance

Greg Gille
19 February 2020

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French electronic security systems company Anaveo, backed by Bridgepoint Development Capital (BDC), has acquired security systems installer Azman, which was minority-owned by Initiative & Finance.

Anaveo was acquired by BDC, BPI France and LT Capital for around €70m in 2016. The SBO saw BDC become Anaveo's majority owner via BDC II, a €350m, 2012-vintage vehicle. LT, a minority shareholder alongside BPI France and the co-investing management team, drew equity from its second fund. LT and BPI France controlled similar stakes in Anaveo following the deal.

The SBO was supported with a unitranche facility provided by Permira Debt Advisers.

The SBO marked an exit for CM-CIC, ACG and Garibaldi Participations. The first two had been shareholders in Anaveo since investing in the company in March 2014, while the latter was an existing backer that reinvested to stay on board.

Founded in 1995, Anaveo provides video surveillance, security access control and intrusion detection services. It has now made five acquisitions since the 2016 buyout.

Previous funding
Initiative & Finance bought a minority stake in Azman Groupe as part of an owner-buyout transaction in late 2017. Founding owner Cedric Wizman retained a majority stake in the structure.

Equity for the investment was drawn from Initiative & Finance FPCI II, a €168m fund launched in 2015. The small-cap fund writes €2-15m tickets, with a sweet spot in the €4-10m range.

Company
Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Maisons-Alfort, Azman provides security systems to businesses, including CCTV, alarms, biometric access control and cardiac defibrillator products.

People
Azman – Cedric Wizman (founder, owner).
Anaveo – Laurent Bellot (chair).