Vitruvian Partners sells Unifaun to Marlin Equity Partners

The GP is divesting the company four years after acquiring a majority stake in it from Bridgepoint via its £1bn Vitruvian Investment Partnership II fund. The transaction is expected to be completed in the next few weeks.

According to sister publication Mergermarket, bidders during the sale process also included EQT and Axcel, with FSN Capital and Hg also supposedly looking at the asset. The sale auction was postponed in April ahead of first-round bids due to Covid-19, but resumed in June.

Unifaun was marketed based on EBITDA of around €15m and is valued at around €200m, according to the publication. 

During Vitruvian's holding period, the company developed a B2C e-commerce module, launched a plug-and-play delivery checkout service that provided shippers with multiple delivery options, and brought to market the MyParcel tracking app for parcel recipients. 

Unifaun also acquired Netherlands-based Transsmart, expanding  into the Benelux and DACH regions.

Previous funding
In 2016, Vitruvian acquired a majority stake in Unifaun from Bridgepoint. Unifaun's management and key staff retained a significant minority stake in the business following the buyout.

UK-based PE firm Bridgepoint acquired Unifaun – then Memnon Networks – through a management buyout in June 2012, taking a majority stake through its mid-cap arm, Bridgepoint Development Capital.

Company
Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Stockholm, Unifaun is a provider of cloud transportation connectivity services to carriers, shippers and parcel recipients in the transport industry.  Unifaun has approximately 200 employees in Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Poland.

People
Vitruvian Partners – Jussi Wuoristo (partner).
Marlin Equity Partners – Peter Chung (managing director).

Advisers
Vendor – Goldman Sachs (M&A); Kirkland & Ellis (legal).
Equity – UBS Investment Bank (M&A); Plesner (legal).

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