IK Partners (“IK”) is pleased to announce that the IK Small Cap III (“IK SC III”) Fund has signed
an agreement to acquire Checkmate Fire (“Checkmate” or “the Company”), the UK’s largest
passive fire protection specialist, from YFM Equity Partners (“YFM”). IK is making its first UK investment from the Fund’s dedicated pool of Development Capital. The existing management
team will be reinvesting alongside IK. Financial terms of the transaction are not disclosed.

Established in 1989 and headquartered in West Yorkshire, Checkmate provides a comprehensive range of passive fire protection services to organisations across the Healthcare, Education, Government, Social Housing and Commercial sectors. The Company inspects, installs, remediates and maintains passive fire systems and also provides installation and maintenance of active fire systems.

Checkmate operates across the UK and has over 200 employees. The Company is responsible for maintaining passive fire systems in around 2,000 buildings nationally to ensure compliance with increasingly stringent regulations, carrying out over 30,000 fire door remediations or replacements per year. The focus is on maintaining fire doors rather than replacing them; an approach that aligns with the Company’s commitment to strong environmental, social and governance practices across the business.

Since YFM’s investment and under the existing management team, Checkmate has scaled rapidly, expanding its service offering and supporting more customers in managing their passive fire systems through multi-year contracts. In partnership with IK, Checkmate will look to further develop its passive fire offering, particularly its inspections division, in a market with compelling long-term growth dynamics. The Company will also continue to invest in its people and technology to enhance operational efficiency, while also executing a targeted M&A strategy.

Completion of the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.

John Lewthwaite, CEO at Checkmate, said: “We are very much looking forward to working with IK after a successful partnership with YFM. IK’s track record of supporting businesses in the fire protection market, combined with our position as UK’s leading passive fire specialist, means that we are best placed to drive future growth in a market with attractive dynamics. We would like to take this opportunity to thank YFM for all their support and guidance over the last five years.”

Simon May, Partner at IK and Advisor to the IK SC III Fund, added: “This is an exciting first investment for the IK Development Capital strategy in the UK. Under the stewardship of John and his team, Checkmate has established itself as a high-quality provider in a rapidly growing and increasingly regulated market. We have been impressed with the Company’s journey to date and see plenty of opportunities for continued growth. We look forward to working with the team at Checkmate and leveraging the resources and expertise of the wider IK platform to deliver an ambitious strategy.”

Steve Harrison, Partner at YFM Equity Partners, commented: “It has been an absolute pleasure working with John and the entire team at Checkmate since we first invested in 2018. The business has seen rapid growth and development during this period, establishing itself as the leading player in the UK passive fire protection market. We wish Checkmate the best of luck for the future with the support of IK.”

For further questions, please contact:

Checkmate Fire
Ian Turpin
Phone: +44 7841 443948
info@checkmatefire.com

IK Partners
Vidya Verlkumar
Phone: +44 (0) 7787 558 193
vidya.verlkumar@ikpartners.com

YFM Equity Partners
Viktoria Harrison
Phone: +44 7716 097 774
viktoria.harrison@yfmep.com

IK Partners (“IK”) is pleased to announce that the IK Small Cap III (“IK SC III”) Fund has signed an agreement to invest in Schwingshandl automation technology GmbH (“Schwingshandl” or “the Company”), a leading provider of smart intralogistics automation solutions based in Austria. IK is partnering with the founders, Thomas Schwingshandl and Enrico Larcher, who will both retain a significant minority share in the Company. Financial terms of the transaction are not disclosed.

Founded in 2003 and headquartered near Linz, Austria, Schwingshandl provides innovative, made-to-measure automation solutions for a broad range of end-market applications. The Company specialises in designing, engineering and assembling customised modules and sub-systems such as storage and distribution technology, lifts, conveyor systems, (de-) palletisers, (de-) stackers and (un-) loading stations. Schwingshandl is a long-term partner to blue-chip customers globally, focusing on the development of high quality, complex intralogistics solutions, leveraging its successful automation track record of over 20 years.

Since inception, Schwingshandl has demonstrated impressive growth, in a large part due to the entrepreneurial spirit of the founders as well as the dedication of its 90 employees. The Company recently finalised the expansion of its production facility and has firmly established itself as a leading provider of customised warehouse automation solutions. In partnership with IK, Schwingshandl will look to: continue investing in its people and organisation; selectively broaden its service offering; and pursue international expansion. Both founders will retain their respective leadership positions on Schwingshandl’s management board and will remain significantly invested in the Company.

Thomas Schwingshandl, Founder and CEO of Schwingshandl, said: “The rise of warehouse automation is a key trend we are seeing across various end-industries, presenting attractive growth opportunities for a Company like ours. We are excited to welcome an experienced partner like IK on board. The team at IK has already recognised Schwingshandl’s potential for development and possesses both the experience and expertise to support our ongoing expansion strategy.”

Nils Pohlmann, Partner at IK and Advisor to the IK SC III Fund, said: “Under the stewardship of Thomas, Enrico and their team, Schwingshandl has established itself as a leading provider of customised intralogistics automation solutions in Europe. We have been extremely impressed with the Company’s journey to date and look forward to utilising our significant experience in the automation technology sector to unlock further value.”

For further questions, please contact:

IK Partners
Vidya Verlkumar
Phone: +44 (0) 7787 558 193
vidya.verlkumar@ikpartners.com

IK Partners (“IK”) is pleased to announce that the IK X Fund has entered into exclusive negotiations to invest in Eurofeu Group (“Eurofeu” or “the Group”), a leading player in the French fire protection market. IK is acquiring a majority stake from CAPZA and the management team, who will both be reinvesting. Financial terms of the transaction are not disclosed.

Founded in 1972 in Senonches (Eure-et-Loir, France), Eurofeu installs and maintains fire protection equipment, as well as fire protection systems, for business-to-business (“B2B”) clients mainly. As one of the few market providers in possession of integrated manufacturing capabilities, Eurofeu has a highly differentiated offering. The Group also benefits from a high level of sales recurrence thanks to the maintenance side of the activity, as well as the associated sales of spare parts.

Today, Eurofeu has 1,850 employees, based across 42 agencies and two manufacturing sites, who serve roughly 160,000 B2B clients across France.

Under CEO Eric Hentgès and with the backing of CAPZA since July 2020, the Group has grown considerably; both organically and via an active buy-and-build strategy. In partnership with IK and with the continued support of CAPZA, Eurofeu has ambitions to leverage its network, salesforce and IT tools at its disposal to drive growth. In addition, the Group plans to expand into other European geographies and drive consolidation.

Completion of the transaction is subject to legal and regulatory approvals.

Eric Hentgès, CEO of Eurofeu, stated: “I have been extremely proud of the progress we have made towards becoming a leading player in the French fire protection market. With CAPZA’s backing since July 2020, we have been able to accelerate organic growth and lead an active M&A strategy, allowing us to expand geographically and broaden the Group’s offering to include equipment with more complex capabilities. We would like to thank CAPZA for their support thus far and look forward to partnering with IK and leveraging their pan-European platform to pursue further expansion.”

Diki Korniloff, Partner at IK and Advisor to the IK X Fund, said: “We have been impressed by Eurofeu’s journey to date and are convinced of the critical and resilient nature of their service offering to a wide base of B2B clients. We are excited to partner with Eric and his team, as well as CAPZA, to support the Group in its next phase of growth, where European expansion will be key. The Group will have access to the full breadth of IK resources and expertise, while also being able to leverage our network of European offices.”

Fabien Bernez, Partner at CAPZA, added: “It has been fantastic to work with Eric and the wider team at Eurofeu over the past few years. Since our investment in 2020, the Group has become a leading player in the French fire safety market; an achievement we are very proud of. We look forward to continuing to support Eurofeu and its management team in the next chapter of growth, alongside IK.”

For further questions, please contact:

IK Partners
Vidya Verlkumar
Phone: +44 (0) 7787 558 193
vidya.verlkumar@ikpartners.com

IK Partners (“IK”) is delighted to announce that it is one of 320 companies recognised as ‘Early Adopters’ of the Taskforce of Nature-related Financial Disclosures (“TNFD”) recommendations. These are companies that intend to start making disclosures aligned with the TNFD Recommendations in their corporate reporting by the financial year 2024 (or earlier) or 2025.

The TNFD announced that 320 organisations from over 46 countries have committed to start making nature-related disclosures based on the TNFD Recommendations published in September last year.

The suggested advice and instructions aim to facilitate the incorporation of nature considerations into the decision-making processes of businesses and finance. This, in turn, will promote a shift in global financial flows, encouraging businesses and finance entities to evaluate, disclose and address their dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities related to nature. The overarching goal is to redirect global financial flows away from outcomes that harm nature and towards outcomes that benefit nature, in accordance with the objectives outlined in the Global Biodiversity Framework.

The initial group comprises prominent publicly traded companies from various regions and industry segments, amounting to a total market capitalisation of US$4 trillion. It also encompasses more than 100 financial institutions, including some of the world’s largest asset owners and managers, with a combined total of US$14 trillion in Assets under Management (AUM). Additionally, it includes banks, insurers, and other key market intermediaries like stock exchanges, audit firms, and accounting firms. The full list of Early Adopters is available here.

The early adoption of TNFD recommendations is the latest significant milestone for IK as it continues to fully integrate environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) matters into its investment process. This announcement follows the validation of IK’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets by the Science Based Targets Initiative in 2022.

Christopher Masek, Chief Executive Officer at IK Partners, said: “I am pleased to see IK become an Early Adopter of the TNFD and committing to making nature-related disclosures in accordance with a globally recognised framework. This will allow us to develop a greater understanding of nature impacts and dependencies of our pan-European portfolio. We are confident that this will support the continued success of both our firm and the companies we work with, thereby benefitting our investors and other important stakeholders.”

Jovana Stopic, ESG Director at IK Partners, added: “This is a very exciting development for IK’s approach to sustainability, focused on enabling us to make the right investment decisions and futureproofing our portfolio companies. Biodiversity and nature are often overlooked; however, it is vital that these elements are given due consideration alongside those related to climate change. The TNFD recommendations are the essential first step in ensuring that this is the case.”

For further questions, please contact:

IK Partners
Vidya Verlkumar
Phone: +44 (0) 7787 558 193
vidya.verlkumar@ikpartners.com

IK Partners (“IK” or “the Firm”) is pleased to announce the promotion of Carl Jakobsson and Frederik Jacobs to Partner in the Mid Cap Investment teams in the Nordics and the Benelux respectively.

Carl joined the Stockholm office in 2013 and specialises in the Business Services sector. He has served on the Boards of numerous portfolio companies, including Aspia, Netel, Evac and Ramudden, since joining. Prior to IK, Carl worked within the Investment Banking department of SEB Enskilda. He holds an MSc and BSc in Finance from the Stockholm School of Economics.

Based in Amsterdam, Frederik joined IK in 2014. He has been involved in several notable transactions across the Benelux region and possesses specialist expertise in the Healthcare sector. Prior to joining IK, Frederik worked in Deutsche Bank’s Investment Banking Division focused on the Benelux region. He holds an MSc and BSc in Business Engineering from the University of Leuven.

Christopher Masek, CEO at IK, commented: “2023 was an exceptionally busy year for IK and we are incredibly proud of the contribution of our outstanding colleagues, especially Carl and Frederik whose hard work has been recognised with their promotions to the Partner Group. Both individuals have shown their ability to deliver results for investors and drive value creation across the portfolio, possessing the drive and level-headedness required in the current market.”

Carl Jakobsson, Partner at IK, added: “I feel privileged to have been given continuous opportunity to gain a wealth of experience over the past 11 years at IK. Since joining, I’ve worked locally in Sweden and across Europe with colleagues and portfolio companies to create growth opportunities.”

Frederik Jacobs, Partner at IK, commented: “I’m grateful to my colleagues for the support I’ve received over the past decade. This has enabled me to make significant progress within the Firm and I’ve had the good fortune of being involved in many interesting projects. I’ve worked alongside brilliant management teams to create excellent outcomes and value for all and I look forward to seeing what the future brings.”

For further questions, please contact:

IK Partners
Vidya Verlkumar
Phone: +44 (0) 7787 558 193
vidya.verlkumar@ikpartners.com

IK Partners (“IK”) and Mérieux Equity Partners (“MxEP”) are pleased to announce that the IK Small Cap II Fund and Mérieux Participations 3 have signed an agreement to sell their respective stakes in Mabtech AB (“Mabtech” or “the Company”), a Swedish biotechnology firm specialising in immune monitoring, to EQT. Financial terms of the contemplated transaction are not disclosed.

Founded in 1986 by immunology researchers and friends at Stockholm University, Mabtech is a global manufacturer of high-quality antibodies, kits and readers used to study immune responses, including those in cancer immunotherapies and infectious diseases. Its products and services help to advance biomedical research and develop vaccines, cell and gene therapies.

Mabtech has consistently been at the forefront of technological innovation within its sector and has a proven track record of effectively scaling its operations to broaden its offering. As a well-established leader in the area of live-cell immunoassay kits and readers for measuring immune cell responses in research, drug development and diagnostic applications, it has plans to expand the product portfolio further. At present, the Company has over 1,000 differentiated products and serves over 900 clients across 60 countries.

With the support of IK and MxEP, Mabtech has: more than doubled its sales and EBITDA through organic growth initiatives; expanded its product / service offering; and professionalised the business by improving internal reporting structures and strengthening its management team. The ownership period also saw the Company pursue geographic expansion leading to a significant presence in the US and China.

Jan Wahlström, CEO of Mabtech, commented: “IK and MxEP have been terrific partners over the last four years, combining direct knowledge of our sector and offering extensive hands-on support. Their support enabled our growth ambitions to materialise, allowing us to accelerate the growth of our core business as well as expand our service offering. We’d like to thank the teams at IK and MxEP for their support and we look forward to working with our new partners, EQT.”

Henrik Geijer, Partner at IK Partners and Advisor to the IK Small Cap II Fund, said: “Mabtech has developed substantially over the course of our partnership with them. Through an expansion of Mabtech’s commercial capabilities, in combination with a continued focus on innovation, the Company has experienced significant growth and, at the same time, expanded into new markets with products carrying the high-quality mark that Mabtech is well-known for. We are very proud of what we have accomplished with the Mabtech team over the last four years and we wish them, along with their new owners, every success in the future.”

Benoît Chastaing, Managing Partner at Mérieux Equity Partners, added: “It has been a fantastic journey with Mabtech and its management team. As a specialised healthcare investor, we are deeply committed to invest in innovative and best-in-class businesses. Being at the forefront of innovation in immunoassays, thanks to its strong scientific expertise, Mabtech was a perfect fit for our investment strategy. We thank Jan Wahlström and his team and wish them all the best for the future.”

Isabel de Paoli, Partner in EQT Private Equity Advisory Team, said: “We are excited to be supporting Mabtech in the next stage of its development. Having already created a growth platform and developed an excellent reputation as a leading, global manufacturer of antibodies, kits and readers, Mabtech is well positioned to accelerate further growth.”

Completion of the transaction is subject to legal and regulatory approvals.

For further questions, please contact:

IK Partners
Vidya Verlkumar
Phone: +44 (0) 7787 558 193
vidya.verlkumar@ikpartners.com

H/Advisors Maitland
Vikki Kosmalska
Phone: +44 (0) 7754 943 601
vikki.kosmalska@h-advisors.global