IK buys majority stake in Auxiga

José Rojo
16 July 2015

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IK Investment Partners has acquired a majority stake in French and Belgian financial business Auxiga Group from private owners.

Auxiga intends to use the fresh funds to strengthen its presence in Belgium and France by improving the synergies linking its four business units. Auxiga is active in Belgium via its Warrant subsidiary and operates in France via Auxita, Auxicontrol and Sofigarant, the latter having been acquired in 2014.

Investing alongside Auxiga's management, IK acquired its stake from private owners including managing director Jacques Lévenez.

Speaking to unquote", a source close to the matter confirmed the deal is the second to be financed by the GP's new small-cap fund, yet to be formally announced.

The vehicle raised €100m at first close on 30 June and is currently raising capital towards its €250m target, this same source revealed. It is expected to provide equity tickets of less than €50m for companies with an enterprise value below the €100m threshold.

Prior to Auxiga, the fund's only investment to date involved SVT Group. The Germany-headquartered fire prevention and protection service was acquired by IK from the management team and German investors SüdBG and Capiton in June, seven years after the latter two first backed the business.

Auxiga is the second business within the French financial sector to receive institutional funding in the past few days, according to unquote" data. In early July, recurring payments specialist SlimPay raised €15m from Dutch VC Prime Ventures, which drew equity from its €170m fourth fund.

Debt
According to sources close to the deal, the transaction was supported by a unitranche facility arranged by La Financière Patrimoniale d'Investissement (LFPI).

Company
Auxiga specialises in providing financing facilities where inventories are used as collateral for loans. Founded in Belgium in 1919, the business operates in the country via its subsidiary Warrant and has also been active in France since 1975 via the Auxiga, Auxicontrol and Sofigarant brands.

Headquartered in Paris, Auxiga currently employs 91 professionals. In 2014, its four business units generated a combined €13m in turnover.

People
IK director Arnaud Bosc, analyst Caroline Le Hen and Pierre Gallix worked on the deal on behalf of the GP. Fabrice Soler is CEO at Auxiga, while Jacques Lévenez is the business's managing director.

Advisers
Equity – Indefi, Julien Berger, Mehdi Belefqih (Commercial due diligence); Deloitte, Frédéric Steiner, Emmanuel Conjard (Financial due diligence); Agilys, Pierre Jouglard, Baptiste Bellone (Legal).
Vendor – Ekapartners, Eric Toulemonde, Wen Hu (Corporate finance); Chaintrier Avocats, Philippe Cabanis (Legal).