Xerys in €10m second round for APR2

The sole investor for the round, Xerys is expected to secure a stake close to the 50% mark, according to market sources. All remaining shares will be held by APR2's management team.

The company will dedicate the fresh capital to increase its workforce with 40 new hires, launch new recycling plants and develop its research and development efforts. The waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) processor intends to acquire three new triboelectric plastic separators to double its current polymer waste-processing rates.

Xerys financed the deal via four different vehicles. It used Financières Xerys, which targets €1-3m investments, as well as its Xerys Innovation fund. Currently the firm's most active vehicle, Xerys Innovation holds stakes worth €1-2m in 10 different companies.

Additional funds used by the firm in the funding round for APR2 include Xerys Venture Capital II, which deploys an average €2-6m per investment, and Xerys Capital, which targets €5-10m equity tickets.

Counting the current €10m investment, Xerys has deployed a total of €60m since it received authorisation by the French financial regulator to start operating in July 2014.

Also a shareholder in French businesses PowiDian, Biolog-id and Advanced Biodesign, the Paris-based firm foresees a total of €35m in investments over the course of 2015.

Previous funding
Xerys has been a shareholder in APR2 since an initial funding round in June 2013. Investing more than €5m via its Financières Xerys and Xerys Venture Capital I funds, the firm was understood to have held a 35% stake in the recycling business.

At the time, APR2 stated it would use the funds to recruit 20 new staff, launch its APR2 Plast brand and increase its exporting rates for treated plastic waste up to 90%.

According to market sources, another focus of the round was to finance the design and testing of a prototype allowing APR2 to separate the plastic waste found in the electronic waste the business recycles across its plants.

Company
Founded in 2002, APR2 is a recycling business that specialises in the collection, treatment and valorisation of WEEE. Under its APR2 Plast brand, the business extracts and processes the plastic components within devices such as computers and printers.

Headquartered in Bonnières-sur-Seine, France, the company is thought to have generated €5m in turnover in 2014 and is now aiming to reach the €40m mark by 2017.

People
Xerys Gestion was represented by CEO Jacques Simonnet, managing director Olivier Ossipoff, general counsel Julien Pouillart and analyst Alexandre Heraud.

Advisers
Equity – Jones Day (Legal).
Company – Baille Bali Jolly Picard (Legal).

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Send to  

• Topics
• France
• Industrials
• Expansion
• France