Apax Partners acquires Three Hills-backed Genius Sports

Apax has acquired a majority stake via the deal, with founders, management and other minority stake holders among the vendors.

Unquote understands that Apax drew capital for the transaction from its ninth fund, which held a final close on its €9bn hard-cap in December 2016. It is also understood the deal took place on an all-equity basis.

The transaction value remains undisclosed, though according to publicly available documents, the business generated EBITDA of £4.8m from a turnover of £32.2m in 2016.

Prior to the sale, Three Hills was invested via a £17m loan as sole lender, and held a 20% stake in Genius Sports.

The company's management team will remain in their roles following the deal and will retain a minority stake, while Three Hills will also roll over part of its proceeds for a minority stake.

Since Three Hills' initial investment in Genius Sports, the business has undertaken an international acquisitive growth strategy, and it will continue to do so under Apax's stewardship. It has tripled its turnover since 2015, according to a statement.

Previous funding
Three Hills Capital Partners first invested in Genius Sports in 2015 in a deal structured as a combination of debt and equity. According to Mergermarket, the GP has since invested a further €10m in the company for an additional minority stake.

Company
Founded in 2000, London-headquartered Genius Sports captures and distributes real-time sport-related data. In addition to helping betting companies analyse their platforms and trading, the company's products are also used by sporting associations including the English Premier League, PGA Tour and Major League Baseball to identify and prevent betting-related corruption.

According to the Mergermarket report, Genius Sports generated €37m in revenues, as of June 2017.

People
Apax Partners – Gabriele Cipparrone (partner).
Genius Sports Group – Mark Locke (CEO).

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