Ardian, Cathay buy listed Artefact

The mandatory withdrawal of Artefact's shares will be effective as of 21 December.

The company's managers are making a substantial reinvestment as part of the deal, according to a statement.

Artefact announced that it was in exclusive negotiations to sell a stake to Ardian Expansion in July 2021, announcing in September that Ardian and the company's shareholders had signed a securities purchase agreement.

The offer is for EUR 7.8 per ordinary share. The deal amounts to 17,811,366 ordinary shares, representing 52.09% of the share capital and 52.09% of voting rights of Artefact. Certain selling shareholders are also transferring 20,000 share purchase options (SPO), representing all of the SPOs issued by Artefact, for EUR 1,190 per shares purchase option.

Ardian is investing via its Ardian Expansion strategy, according to a statement. Ardian Expansion III held a final close in September 2020 on EUR 2bn. The fund typically deploys equity tickets of EUR 40m-180m and expects to make 18-20 investments. The vehicle invests in the IT services, technology, medical technology, healthcare, business services and industrial sectors.

Following the investment, Artefact intends to triple its workforce by 2025, with 500 hires planned for 2022 alone, according to a statement.

Eurazeo, Tikehau Capital, Eiffel and BPI France have provided debt to back the deal, according to a statement.

Company
Founded in 2014 by Vincent Luciani and Guillaume de Roquemaurel, Artefact is a data consulting and digital marketing company. It aims to assist its clients with data governance and infrastructure, as well as data-driven marketing.

According to a statement, Artefact serves clients in the fast-moving consumer goods, retail, luxury, telecommunications, healthcare, tourism and industrials sectors, with clients such as Orange, Samsung, L'Oréal and Sanofi.

The company posted 2020 EBITDA of EUR 13.9m, according to its annual report. It employs 800 staff.

People
Ardian – Marie Arnaud-Battandier (managing director), Stephan Torra (director); Thomas Grétéré, Leslie Parmast (investment managers).
Cathay Capital – Jérémie Falzone (partner); Benoît Seringe (investment director); Bertrand Uchan (private equity investor); Marc Lin (private equity analyst).
Artefact – Vincent Luciani (co-founder, CEO).

Advisers
Equity (Ardian) – Latham & Watkins, Olivier Du Mottay, Olivia Rauch-Ravisé, Philippe Tesson, Mayssa Sader Michel Houdayer (legal); Sycomore Corporate Finance, Tristan Dupont, Olivier Barret, Pierre-Arnaud De Lacharrière, Marion Pouchain (corporate finance); Clipperton Finance, Nicolas von Bulow, Martin Vielle, Natixis Partners, Philippe Charbonnier (corporate finance); Societe Generale, Stéphanie Kordonian, Stephane Krief, Asgar Sondarjee, Florent Guillermain (corporate finance); Bain & Company, Daphné Vattier, Thibaud Chabrelié, Guillaume Tobler (commercial due diligence); Alvarez & Marsal, Ghislain De Seze, Simon Regad, Guillaume Blanchard (financial due diligence); KPMG Avocats, Xavier Houard, Thomas Chardenal (legal, tax); Finaxy, Deborah Hauchemaille (insurance due diligence).
Debt – Paul Hastings, Olivier Vermeulen (legal).
Equity (Cathay Capital) – Roland Berger, Jean-Michel Cagin, Cyrille Vincey (commercial due diligence); Hogan Lovells, Stéphane Huten, Arnaud Deparday (legal).
Vendor – BDGS, Youssef Djehane, François Baylion, Marie Dupin, Jules Brizi (legal); Cambon Partners, Guillaume Teboul, Michael Azencot, Samuel Koubi, Côme Mullie (corporate finance); Alvarez & Marsal, Frédéric Steiner, Nicolas Guillo, Baptiste Rideau (financial due diligence); EY, Mathieu Dautriat, Charles Moulette, Solal Blanc, Adrien Khaznadji, Sylvie Magnen, Thomas Jaegle (legal, tax).
Management – Jausserand & Audouard, Tristan Audouard, Carole Degonse, Antoine Le Roux (legal).

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• Topics
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• Ardian (formerly Axa PE)
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