EQT invests in Vitruvian-backed CFC

Financials were not disclosed. According to a report by Insurance Insider, the deal values the business at GBP 2.5bn - EQT declined to comment on that figure.

CFC will nearly double its employee shareholders from 175 to more than 300, and employees will remain the largest shareholder group in CFC, according to a statement.

EQT will be invested through its EQT IX fund, which closed on EUR 15.6bn in April 2020. EQT IX is expected to be 70-75% invested following the deal.

Vitruvian Partners backed the management buyout of the British insurance broker in 2017. According to press reports at the time, the GP acquired a 40% stake in the business in a deal valuing the company at GBP 230m. Vitruvian backed the company's MBO alongside the founder and CEO, David Walsh, and the management team. According to Unquote sister publication Debtwire, Alcentra and RBS provided a unitranche and a senior debt package respectively to support the deal.

Company
Founded in 1999, CFC is a technology-driven insurance broker focusing on emerging risks that sit at the intersection of technology and business. CFC writes 50 products across 20 different classes of specialist insurance focused primarily on SME businesses.

The company has more than 500 staff located across the UK, the US, Europe and Australia. CFC has an annual premium run rate in excess of GBP 750m and delivered an organic EBITDA CAGR of 35% over the last five years, it said in a statement.

People
EQT - Robert Maclean (partner), Sofia Ahuja (managing director).
Vitruvian Partners - Joe O' Mara, Stephen Byrne (partners).

Advisers
Equity (EQT) - Morgan Stanley (M&A); Kirkland & Ellis (legal); KPMG (financial due diligence); Bain & Company (commercial due diligence).

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