ISIS backs £46m Autologic MBO

The business had been backed by Foresight and Octopus Investments since 2009 – Foresight sold a 50% stake but reinvested in the newco, while Octopus exited in full. The management team also rolled a "significant" amout into the newco.

HSBC Leveraged Finance provided debt facilities to leverage the transaction. ISIS was introduced to the deal by WK Corporate Finance and invested from the ISIS IV LP fund, which closed on £238.5m in 2007.

Foresight reaped £12.7m from the sale, equating to 3.4x its original investment.

The new capital structure will allow Autologic to sustain its overseas expansion. The company will also look to keep developing its own products, brands and translations.

Previous funding
Foresight backed the £7.5m BIMBO of Diagnos – the editor of Autologic - in 2009, providing £3.75m of equity. The business was acquired from private owners. Octopus supported the transaction with a flexible £3m debt facility via its Breathing Space product.

Octopus invested a further £3m in the business in July 2011 through a combination of debt, mezzanine and equity.

Since the 2009 BIMBO, Autologic's turnover has grown from £6.2m to £14.5m.

Company
Founded in 1999, Autologic develops automotive diagnostic software products that allow independent workshops to service various car brands. Headquartered in Wheatley, Oxfordshire, Autologic also has offices in New York and Hong Kong.

People
Daniel Smith led the deal for ISIS. Peter Toland is managing director of Autologic.

Advisers
Equity – Catalyst Corporate Finance, Mark Humphries, Paul Vanstone, James Guglia (Corporate finance).
Vendors – WK Corporate Finance, Andy Coghlan (Corporate finance).

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• Topics
• UK / Ireland
• Buyouts
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• Technology
• United Kingdom
• ISIS Equity Partners
• Octopus Investments
• Foresight Group