Epiris sells TechInsights to Oakley in final exit from Axio

The sale is the seventh and final "major realisation" from Axio, the vendor confirmed, and has generated proceeds of £26m for Epiris-managed funds based on current exchange rates.

It brings the total returns generated from the investment in Axio to around £455m, which represents a 5x return and an IRR of 76%.

Oakley's funding for the transaction, through which it has taken a majority stake in the IP consultancy, was drawn from Oakley Capital Private Equity III.

The acquirer said in a statement it would look to invest up to $49.9m in the company's future expansion plans. Under its new ownership the business will invest in product development.

As part of the deal, Axio CEO Henry Elkington will take on the role of chairperson at TechInsights.

Under the tenure of Epiris and Axio, TechInsights bolted on Canadian competitor Chipworks in June 2016. The GP provided an acquisition finance facility to support the transaction.

Axio's sale of TechInsights comes two months after it sold Risi, a provider of information and intelligence services to the forestry products sector, to trade buyer Euromoney Institutional Investor for $125m. It also comes within six months of the sales of aviation division OAG to Vitruvian Partners for $215m and healthcare division Vidal Group to listed Japanese online portal M3 for €100m.

Less recently, the portfolio company sold shipping division JOC Group to US corporate buyer HIS in November 2014, logistics division Breakbulk to ITE Group in January 2015 and Mims – another healthcare focused division – to strategic buyers SMS and Mitsui in October 2015.

The final exit from Axio marks the latest in a series of divestments by Epiris, as it approaches the end of its 12-month notice period as investment portfolio manager of listed LP Electra Private Equity. Most recently, the GP sold its stakes in home builder Cala Group and residential equity release business Retirement Bridge to Patron Capital Partners for a combined £94m.

The sale of TechInsights is expected to complete by the end of May 2017.

Previous funding
Electra first invested in Axio in April 2013, when it carved out the business, then called UBM Data Services, from parent UBM. The £160m spinout was financed via £91m from Electra and a £40m PIK vendor loan.

Later, the GP provided its portfolio company with fresh acquisition capital to fund the merger of its intellectual property division TechInsights with Canadian competitor Chipworks.

Company
Headquartered in Ottawa, TechInsights provides consultancy, patent brokerage and technical reverse engineering to the intellectual property sector.

According to a statement issued by Oakley, the business generated revenues of $45m in 2016, with EBITDA of $12.6m.

Axio is headquartered in London.

People
Epiris – Alex Fortescue (managing partner); Alex Cooper-Evans (partner).
Oakley Capital – Peter Dubens (director).
Axio Group – Henry Elkington (CEO).

Advisers
Equity – Ropes & Gray, Phil Sanderson, Helen Croke,  Electra Sorba, Ron Boucher (legal).

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

• Topics
• Exits
• Buyouts
• UK / Ireland
• Support services
• United Kingdom
• Secondary buyout
• Epiris
• Oakley Capital