Equistone, SL Capital exit Together in £288m deal
Equistone Partners Europe and SL Capital Partners have sold their stakes in UK specialist lender Together for £288m, as part of a management buy-back deal.
The sale to the company's founders comes 10 years after Equistone first invested in Together.
The £288m returned to investors as part of the exit is in addition to proceeds realised during the course of Equistone's investment, unquote" understands.
During the GP's holding period the company made a number of new appointments to its senior management team, invested in its loan processing platform and undertook an organic growth strategy. In 2014 the company launched its My Broker Venue product, a low-cost online processing portal for brokers and intermediaries.
The deal has been financed via the issuance of £220m of payment-in-kind toggle notes and comes three weeks after the business issued £375m of senior secured notes.
Previous funding
Equistone (then known as Barclays Private Equity) acquired a 30% stake in Together (at the time known as Jerrold Holdings), for £113.5m in September 2006. The GP, which drew its capital from Equistone Partners Europe Fund II, subsequently syndicated £20m of its investment to funds managed by SL Capital Partners.
Company
Founded in 1974 and headquartered in Cheadle, Cheshire, Together provides residential, commercial and buy-to-let mortgages, short-term finance, auction finance, and secured loans.
The business had a loan book of £1.8bn as of June 2016, a year-on-year increase of 26.5% compared to 2015. It employs 350 people, generating net income of £146m with pre-tax profits of £90.3m in its most recent financial year, up from £114.8m and £74.8m respectively in the year to June 2015.
The Together group is comprised of the brands Auction Finance, Blemain Finance, Bridging Finance, Cheshire Mortgage Corporation and Lancashire Mortgage Corporation.
People
Equistone Partners Europe – Steve O'Hare (partner).
Together – Mike McTighe (chairperson).
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