EQT exits Vertu

The sale, which has already been granted all the required approvals, comes more than three years after EQT acquired a 90% stake in Vertu. The buyout, completed in June 2012, saw the GP carve out the asset from parent Nokia, which retained a 10% interest post-deal.

The deal marked the end of speculation that EQT, initially well positioned for Vertu, was contemplating to pull out after reports of fellow GP Permira eyeing the asset. 

Although an enterprise value for Vertu was not disclosed at the time, EQT financed the takeover with EQT VI, which typically invests in assets in the €75-400m enterprise value bracket, according to unquote" data.

EQT VI reached its €4.75bn hard-cap when it closed in October 2011, nine months after fundraising began. The fund is currently still deploying commitments – in August, it was used by EQT to snap up a majority stake in Danish aircraft lessor Nordic Aviation Capital in a $3.3bn MBO.

Under EQT's three-year tenure, Vertu has taken on Google's Android as its main operating system and launched new product lines such as Aster, Signature Touch and Alligator. Over the summer, a partnership was established with luxury carmaker Bentley.

Company
With headquarters in Church Crookham, Hampshire, Vertu was created as a subsidiary of Nokia in 1998. Since inception, the company has specialised in the design and sale of personalised, high-end mobile phones and accessories.

The business employs 800 people across the globe and is present in more than 66 countries, where its products are sold via a network of 500 stores, 77 of which are its own boutiques.

People
EQT's work on the deal was coordinated by Caspar Callerström, who is partner at the GP.

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