Livingbridge sells Southern Communications

Greg Gille
21 December 2021

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Livingbridge has exited its investment in UK-based telecommunications firm Southern Communications.

The GP appointed Oakley Advisory to launch the sale over the summer, as reported. Southern Communications was being marketed based on EBITDA of around GBP 25m, according to sources speaking to Mergermarket at the time.

Livingbridge began exploring sale options for the company in 2020. The original process, which had been slated to launch in summer 2020, was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the aforementioned report.

Unquote has reached out to Livingbridge to clarify the identity of the acquirer.

Livingbridge invested in Southern Communications in 2016. The deal saw Livingbridge take a minority stake in the business, as a means to help finance the company's growth plans. The investment was originally made from the Livingbridge 5 fund.

In addition to the equity investment, the transaction also involved a new GBP 36m loan facility provided by HSBC and Santander, according to Unquote Data. Existing CEO Paul Bradford remained at the helm of the company and was joined by former TalkTalk CEO David Goldie, who was appointed as the new chair of Southern Communication's board.

At the time of the original investment, Livingbridge was aiming to further consolidate a fragmented market through strategic M&A. Since then, Southern Communications has executed 16 add-on deals across the UK.

According to the GP, Southern Communications has also expanded its product set, augmented its second-tier management team, and developed both its technology platform and customer retention strategy during this time.

Company
Founded in 1965, Southern Communications provides SMEs across the UK with a range of services including fixed-line, data, mobile and cloud-based services alongside its proprietary MyPhones platform. It claims to be one of the oldest telcos in the UK.

The company recorded revenues of GBP 86.9m in the year to March 2020, up from GBP 70.3m the year before, according to company accounts. EBITDA rose to GBP 21.8m from GBP 15.9m in the period, the filings show. Its average headcount increased to 371 in 2020, compared to 338 the year before.

People
Livingbridge – Matthew Caffrey (partner).