Bowmark's Node4 acquires Secura

Kenny Wastell
16 May 2019

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Bowmark Capital-backed IT and communications business Node4 has acquired cloud hosting business Secura.

The transaction is the fifth and largest acquisition made by Node4 since its foundation, according to a statement. It comes two and a half years after Bowmark backed the secondary buyout of Node4 from LDC and two years after the portfolio company bolted on database service Onomi.

At the time of the SBO, £40m in follow-on debt and equity funding was set aside to finance bolt-ons.

Under its previous owners, the business acquired Reconnix and Premier IT Networks in 2015 and LETN Solutions in 2014.

The latest acquisition is intended to expand Node4's range of cloud services, in addition to presenting synergies with its existing N4Stack Azure service and boosting the group's presence in the north-west of England. The consolidated business will generate revenues of around £55m, according to the statement, with £20m accounted for by cloud-related services.

Bowmark is invested in Node4 via 2013-vintage vehicle Bowmark Capital Partners V, which closed on £375m.

Company
Headquartered in Welwyn Garden City and founded in 2001, Secura provides cloud hosting services for web applications. The business has a headcount of around 35, and 110 customers. It is anticipating revenues of around £5m for the year ending in June 2019 and has grown at a rate of around 40% year-on-year, according to the statement.

People
Node4 – Andrew Gilbert (CEO).
Secura – Ollie Beaton (CEO).

Advisers
Acquirer – Pinsent Masons (legal); PwC (financial due diligence, tax); Deloitte (tax)
Vendor – KPMG (corporate finance).