LBO Partners exits Nerim to Dzeta Group

José Rojo
16 April 2015

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LBO Partners has sold its majority participation in French telecommunications operator Nerim to Paris-based firm Dzeta Group.

Details surrounding the value of the deal or the stake that will change hands remain confidential, but Dzeta stated it will become the reference shareholder in Nerim. The French mid-cap player typically targets majority stakes in companies with enterprise values of between €20-75m.

The deal featured a mezzanine debt package supplied by Indigo capital and a senior debt facility from French banks LCL, Neuflize OBC, Banque Palatine and Banque Populaire.

Nerim's management, which has held a participation since the 2012 MBO, have reinvested to increase their stake in the company.

Dzeta Group first contacted Nerim's management via intermediary M&A firm LD&A Jupiter. An offer was then put forward to acquire the French business, with terms comparable to those presented by a previous, unsuccessful buyer – an actor from the industrial sector.

Nerim intends to use the fresh capital to reinforce its presence within the business-oriented integrated telecommunications services industry, both in France and abroad.

Previous funding

Bought by fellow firm Fondations Capital in 2013, LBO Partners acquired a majority stake in Nerim in April 2012. The €25m MBO saw founders Christophe Carel and Jacques Bouaziz sell their stakes in the business, according to unquote" data.

Meanwhile, the company's staff were offered the chance to acquire shares in the new structure – a third have done so to date, according to Nerim.

LBO Partners supported the telecoms business in its acquisition strategy. In 2013, Nerim picked up French cloud computing business Boost and B2B telecommunications company Normaction.

Company
Founded in 1999 by Christophe Carel and Jacques Bouaziz, Nerim is an independent B2B telecommunications operator that provides ADSL, XDSL, cloud, hosting and fixed- and mobile-telephony services to 20,000 clients from SMEs and public authorities.

Headquartered in Paris, the company claims an average annual 30% growth rate since its creation. Nerim most recently reported €40m in turnover, up from the €25m the business generated when it was acquired by LBO Partners in 2012.

People
LBO Partners was represented by deputy managing director Gontran Duchesne, while CEO Claude Darmon led the deal for Dzeta. Cyril de Metz is CEO at Nerim.