N+1 Mercapital CEO resigns

Amy King
19 November 2013

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Javier Loizaga has resigned from his post as CEO of Spain’s largest private equity firm N+1 Mercapital, according to communications sent to investors seen by unquote”.

The resignation comes as a result of irreconcilable differences separating Loizaga and the other partners at the firm regarding the number of resources committed by the firm to local funds in Latin America. Other partners at the firm are understood to have questioned the resources allocated to Latin America on the back of Spain's economic recovery and rising local opportunities.

As a result, Loizaga will not lead the firm's upcoming fundraise for a Spanish vehicle, due to launch next year. He was named chairman of Mercapital in 2008, when he took over the position from his father.

Loizaga, a former chairman of the EVCA, will remain a partner and shareholder at the firm and will continue to work on the GP's previous fund, Mercapital Spanish Buy Out Fund III, raised by Mercapital prior to its merger with N+1 in July 2012. The vehicle recently divested Spanish information and communications technology firm Arsys to 1&1 for around €140m.

The allure of Latin American shores was one reason behind the merger of the two firms. "At some point we realised that having direct business in Latin America would require a lot of effort and man hours, and we decided that we wouldn't be able to do it alone at the speed we thought was best," Eusebio Martin, partner at Mercapital, told unquote" in an earlier interview. "So this is when we started the real discussions with N+1, who also concluded that international growth is the way forward. And we agreed to merge."

Ignacio Moreno, current managing partner of N+1 Mercapital, will act as interim CEO while the firm's partners elect a replacement. Prior to the firm's merger, Moreno was CEO of N+1 Private Equity, but began his career at Mercapital, where he was a senior director.

The composition of the remaining N+1 Mercapital team remains unchanged.

The firm's most recent transaction was the sale of tinplate packaging manufacturer Mivisa in November. The GP joined Blackstone in the €1.2bn divestment of the asset to Crown Holdings. N+1 received a €21.8m dividend recap payment in April this year, equating to 65% of its total investment in the firm.