Astorg buys majority stake in Five Arrows-backed Opus 2

The deal will see Five Arrows and the company's management team reinvest in the business.

The deal valued Opus 2 at around €350m, a source close to the situation told Unquote.

Astorg is deploying equity via its Mid-Cap fund, which invests in companies with enterprise values of €150-400m. Opus 2 is the first deal from the fund.

According to a statement, Astorg will aim to support Opus 2's geographical expansion, particularly in the US, and in the international arbitration market.

Five Arrows acquired a minority stake in Opus 2 in August 2017 via Five Arrows Principal Investments II, which closed on €775m in October 2015. The fund makes equity investments of €20-70m, targeting businesses valued in the €50-500m range.

At the time of Five Arrows' investment, the company reported revenues of £11.8m in the year ending in March 2016, with an operating profit of £3.1m, and employed 150 staff.

During the investment period, in February 2021, Opus 2 acquired UK-based Bar Squared, a developer of barristers' chambers management software.

Company
Founded in 2008 and headquartered in London, Opus 2 is a legal technology platform for law firms that allows parties in a dispute to organise virtual hearings and exchange documents, as well as providing court reporting and real-time transcription services.

According to its latest publicly available accounts, the company generated revenues of £20.8m and operating profit of £4.3m in the financial year ending in March 2020, compared with turnover of £16.9m and operating profit of almost £4m in the previous financial year.

People
Opus 2 – Graham Smith-Bernal (founder); Martin Coen (CEO).
Astorg – Charles-Hubert Le Baron (director); Lionel de Posson (managing partner of Astorg Mid-Cap).
Five Arrows Principal Investments – Sacha Oshry (managing director).

Advisers
Equity – Raymond James (M&A); BCG (commercial due diligence); EY (financial due diligence, tax); Latham & Watkins (legal); Dickson Minto (legal); Intuitus (financial due diligence).
Vendor – Harris Williams (M&A); Oliver Wyman (commercial due diligence); Grant Thornton (financial due diligence); Shoosmiths (legal); Dickson Minto (legal); CMS (legal); Crosslake (technology due diligence).
Management – Jamieson (corporate finance).

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• Topics
• Buyouts
• Exits
• France
• Technology
• United Kingdom
• Astorg Partners
• Rothschild
• Partial sale