GMT sells MeetingZone to trade for £61.4m

Oscar Geen
16 May 2018

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GMT Communications Partners has sold conferencing services provider MeetingZone to AIM-listed LoopUp Group for a total cash consideration of ТЃ61.4m.

The sale ends a holding period of almost seven years for GMT, which acquired the company for an enterprise value of £38.5m in August 2011. The GP drew equity for the deal from GMT Communications Partners III, a €250m buyout fund that held a final close in July 2007.

UpZone will fund the acquisition through the issuance of 12.5 million ordinary shares at 400 pence per share (raising £50m) and the issuance of a £17m term loan arranged by the Bank of Ireland. The bank will also make a £3m revolving credit facility available to the new group but it will not initially be drawn.

Arma Partners advised MeetingZone on the bilateral sales process and marketed the company based on a 2017 EBITDA of £5m, equating to an exit multiple of 12.3x. The new group will report a combined EBITDA of £8.4m from £39.9m of revenues for the same period.

LoopUp said the new group's scale will promote the established "network effect" for its product and improve buying power with its suppliers.

Previous funding
GMT bought MeetingZone for £38.5m in August 2011. The GP acquired the business from its founders Tim Duffy and Steve Gandy, as well as direct secondaries investor Nova Capital Management. Duffy and Gandy took significant minority stakes in the new business.

Company
MeetingZone is headquartered in Thame, Oxford, and is an independent conferencing and collaboration service. The company has international operations in Germany, Sweden and North America, and has 6,000 customers worldwide. The business generated revenues of £22.5m, gross profit of £15m and adjusted EBITDA of £5m in 2017.

People
GMT Communications Partners – Timothy Green (managing partner).
LoopUp – Steve Flavell (co-CEO).
MeetingZone – Tim Duffy, Steve Gandy (co-founders).

Advisers
Vendor – Arma Partners (corporate finance); Shearman & Sterling (legal).
Acquirer – Pinsent Masons (legal).