Press release – June 1, 2023

Today, Truesec announces the acquisition of the Danish company Venzo Cyber Security A/S. The purpose of the acquisition is to further strengthen Truesec´s position as preferred cyber partner in Northern Europe, preventing cyberattacks and minimizing impact.

Truesec´s acquisition of Venzo Cyber Security A/S, a former Venzo Group company, marks an important step for Truesec on its mission to create a safe digital future, as well as to further strengthen its cybersecurity capabilities.

“The acquisition of Venzo Cyber Security A/S significantly enhances our cyber defense capabilities, enabling us to better protect society from cyberattacks. We are excited to welcome the team to Truesec, as their expertise combined with our cyberspecialists in Denmark will make a significant difference in creating a safer society for all organizations in Denmark and Northern Europe”, says Anna Averud – CEO of Truesec Group.

“We are pleased to have found a new owner for our group company, Venzo Cyber Security A/S, and we are very happy on the team’s behalf. In Truesec, they will become part of a dedicated security firm with a global reach, while VENZO continue to pursue our strategy of delivering large multi-disciplinary digital transformation programs in Denmark and the Nordics” says Søren Luplau-Pagh, CEO of VENZO Group.

“This is a significant step forward and will further strengthen Truesec’s offering in Denmark and the Nordics. At Truesec our ambition is to secure Europe´s society against cyberattacks. With our strong team, we’re better equipped to proactively prevent cyberattacks and minimize their impact” says Morten von Seelen, CEO Truesec Denmark.

The acquisition is expected to be completed 1st of June 2023.

Contact us for further information or any inquiries you may have.

Jennie Mattar
CMO, Truesec
Email: Jennie.mattar@truesec.com
Phone: +46-72 858 88 78

Anna Averud
CEO, Truesec
Email: Anna.averud@truesec.com
Phone: +46-70 918 30 48

Søren Luplau-Pagh
Group CEO, VENZO A/S
Email: slp@venzo.com
Phone: +45 20 28 56 7

Paris, 31 May 2023 – Linxea Finance Group (“the Group”), Linxea.com (“Linxea”) and Irbis solutions —supported by NextStage AM and M3I (“Matignon Investissement”) since 2015, are welcoming new investment from IK Partners (“IK”) to launch a new phase of accelerated development. The transaction is subject to the approval of the AMF, the French financial markets regulator.

Over the past 20 years, Linxea has established itself as the leading independent online platform for the distribution of savings products in France. Since 2015, under the leadership of Antoine Delon and Yves Conan, Linxea has seen very strong growth with the support of NextStage AM and MI3. During this time, the platform has seen its client base grow from 20,000 to 90,000 as well as an increase in its assets under management from €800 million to €2.8 billion. Against the backdrop of a challenging macro-economic environment, the results for 2022, which included a record inflow of €600 million and over 20,000 new customers, are evidence of the solidity and relevance of the platform developed by the Linxea teams.

Irbis has also established itself as a French leader in the design of structured products distributed through a network of financial advisors, private banks and institutions. Since it deals with a growing asset class, 2022 was a busy year for the Irbis team. Generating over €1 billion in revenue, the team used its extensive digital skills to strengthen the range of services offered and develop new features for the Irbis Map tool.

The addition of IK to the shareholder base marks a new phase in the Group’s journey. Since 2015, the Group has digitalised all its processes under the leadership of Tiphaine de Labarre, Chief Product Officer and going forward, it aims to continuously improve the platform and offer new services, while also strengthening its teams. To support these efforts, the Group hired three new recruits at the beginning of the year: Vincent Riffier, Michaël Turjeman and Sébastien Raphanaud who hold the roles of Chief Technology Officer, Director of Operations and Director of the Asset Management Division respectively.

This added investment is also an opportunity for Antoine and Yves to reinforce the Group’s Management Committee which has recently seen the addition of three General Managers: Stanislas de Vasselot as Chief Financial Officer, Clément Lemaire as Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Irbis and Diane Larramendy as Chief Operations Officer who will be overseeing the Group’s digital development.

“We are proud to have succeeded in our ambition of becoming a leader in the distribution of online savings products since our acquisition in 2015. Our well-established track record in financial products has enabled us to consolidate the platform’s historical value proposition — the most diverse offering at the lowest price — and focus on providing the best digital customer experience for our users, thanks to a team of excellent managers. None of this would have been possible without the support of our financial shareholders, NextStage AM and M3I, who showed confidence in us during this initial development phase. The arrival of IK at the table signifies the beginning of a new stage in the history of the Group and we are excited to see what the next few years will bring”, said Antoine Delon, Co-Chair of the Linxea-Irbis Group along with Yves Conan.

“This strategic move provides an opportunity for us to recognise the progress made by the teams across the Group, particularly Antoine and Yves since 2015. Today, Linxea is in the best position to transform the savings market. The potential for innovation and a successful outcome is what convinced us to invest in the company in the first place and make it a key part of our platform. The success of Irbis’s offering is also proof of the fundamental transformation the Group has undergone in terms of its the savings product range and we are delighted to welcome IK to help us accelerate the Group’s development in a market that has, so far, only experienced the start of what will be a profound and lasting disruption,” added Jean-David Haas, Co-Founder of NextStage AM.

“We have been thoroughly impressed with the Group’s journey to date, especially in the way in which it has led the market in terms of offering innovative solutions which capitalise on market disruption. We are delighted at the level of confidence bestowed upon us by the Group’s management team as well as shareholders and we look forward to working with them to actively contribute to its continued development,” concluded Pierre Gallix, Managing Partner at IK and Advisor to the IK Small Cap III Fund.

Those involved in the operation:

Media contacts:

NextStage AM: Jonathan Boudin – jbo@nextstage.com – +33 (0)1 44 29 99 04
Shan: Laurence Tovi – laurence.tovi@shan.fr – +33 (0)6 20 58 29 02 / Lola Gozlan – lola.gozlan@shan.fr – +33 (0)1 42 86 82 47 / Anne-Laure Daulier – al.daulier@shan.fr – +33 (0)6 28 59 50 38
IK Partners: Vidya Verlkumar – vidya.verlkumar@ikpartners.com – +44 7787 558 193

Chorley, United Kingdom, 30 May 2023 – Ipsum Group (“Ipsum” or “the Company”), a leading provider of specialist infrastructure services to highly critical assets within the UK power and water markets, is pleased to announce the appointment of Charlie Cornish as the new Chair of Ipsum. Charlie brings a wealth of experience in the UK’s power, water and infrastructure markets, both at an executive and non-executive level.

Charlie is currently Group Chief Executive for Manchester Airports Group, a role he has held for more than a decade. Prior to this, he was Managing Director for Utility Solutions at United Utilities plc and Chief Operating Officer at RWE Thames Water. Charlie’s most recent non-executive role was Chair of Network Plus, a leading utilities and infrastructure services provider for the UK’s water, gas, electricity and telecoms sectors.

Charlie’s extensive experience is expected to be hugely beneficial to the continued growth and success of Ipsum.

Richard Thomas, CEO of Ipsum, commented: “We are very pleased to welcome Charlie to the Board as we seek continued growth; both organically and through a selective acquisition strategy. We are confident that his experience of supporting businesses to achieve transformational growth in this sector will benefit the Group and allow us to further scale our proposition in the UK water and power markets.”

Charlie Cornish, incoming Chair of Ipsum, added: “This is an exciting time to be joining such a dynamic company in the UK infrastructure market. The recent acquisition by IK Partners, together with the strength of the management team, means that Ipsum is well-placed to capitalise on the growth prospects within this sector. I look forward to bringing my relevant experience to the role as the Company continues progressing along its impressive trajectory.”

In March 2023, Ipsum announced a new strategic partnership with leading European private equity firm IK Partners (“IK”), whose IK Small Cap III Fund signed an agreement to acquire the business from Aliter Capital. With the support of IK, the business will continue to focus on both organic and acquisitive growth in markets that have compelling long-term growth dynamics, supporting UK infrastructure players on their journey towards energy transition, sustainability and a low carbon agenda.

For further questions, please contact:
Simon Traylen (simon.traylen@ipsum.co.uk)

IK Partners (“IK”) is pleased to announce that the IK IX Fund has signed an agreement to acquire GoodLife Foods B.V. (“GoodLife Foods”, “GoodLife” or “the Company”), a leading European manufacturer of frozen snacks. IK is acquiring a majority stake from Egeria Capital Management (“Egeria”) alongside management who will be reinvesting. Financial terms of the transaction are not disclosed.

Headquartered in Breda, the Netherlands, GoodLife Foods is a leading European manufacturer of frozen snacks and meal components such as spring rolls, appetisers, burgers as well as cheese and vegetable bites. The Company offers a broad portfolio of branded and private label products which it sells to Retail, Foodservice and Industrial customers across Europe. GoodLife has over 700 employees with six manufacturing plants located across the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark.

Formed by the carve-out of Izico from Wessanen in 2014, GoodLife has grown to become a fully integrated leading European frozen appetiser platform. Under Egeria, the Company acquired six companies in three different countries which was followed by years of strong organic growth.

Under the existing management team, GoodLife has gone from strength-to-strength and through its partnership with IK, it expects to further expand its product portfolio with on-trend frozen bites. It also plans to achieve further growth acceleration in- and outside of its core geographies through organic initiatives and buy-and-build.

Dirk Van de Walle, CEO at GoodLife Foods, stated: “We look forward to the next chapter which will see us working with the team at IK who have vast experience in the Food sector and can support us with our ambitious plans to internationalise through organic initiatives and M&A. I would also like to use the opportunity to thank Egeria. We are grateful for the support and opportunities that Egeria has provided GoodLife with over the past years.”

Remko Hilhorst, Managing Partner at IK and Advisor to the IK IX Fund, stated: “We have been impressed with GoodLife’s track record to date and its ability to continuously evolve its product portfolio to meet the needs of its customers. It has a diversified offering with further growth potential which can be unlocked in the years to come. With its solid foundation in place, we look forward to collaborating with Dirk and the team to develop the Company further.”

Sander van Keken, Partner at Egeria, stated: “It has been a true pleasure working with Dirk, Kamiel, Willem and the complete GoodLife organisation. We are proud that under our ownership Goodlife has transformed from a carved-out company primarily focused on the Benelux to a European company with a much broader product range of frozen snacks. I am confident that together with IK GoodLife will continue to expand across Europe whilst maintaining its unique and pleasant GoodLife culture.”

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

Stockholm 2023-05-04 – Aspia acquires Prokuria Polar, Norwegian accountancy group specialized in accounting, payroll and business advisory.

Aspia is a leading business partner in accounting, payroll, tax and business advisory and has been operating in the Nordic market since 2018. Aspia now strengthens its offering with the acquisition of Prokuria Polar.

Prokuria Polar is a fast-growing Norwegian service provider represented in several Norwegian cities. They are specialized in accounting, payroll and business advisory.

Prokuria Polar will become part of Aspia and thereby strengthening Aspia’s existing Nordic offering and scaling up its presence in the Norwegian market.

Ola Gunnarsson, CEO at Aspia stresses that there is an increased demand for Nordic solutions among both Swedish and Nordic companies. The acquisition of Prokuria Polar will strengthen Aspia’s offering of day-by-day accounting and financial reporting as well as advisory services. “We recognize a growing complexity as companies expand from national to a Nordic or international market. This acquisition makes us at Aspia a reliable business partner that can support businesses’ growth journey and assure both value and confidence in this process. I value that Prokuria Polar, just like Aspia, has a perfect combination of both people and technology”, says Gunnarsson and adds: “They also believe in automation and digitalization, while striving to deliver the most advanced advisory offering on the market.”.

Together with Aspia, Prokuria Polar will continue to be a local and digital partner that delivers the markets best offering to their clients.

Aspia, including the newly acquired Prokuria Polar, will form a solid cornerstone for continued growth in the Nordic market as a leading business partner in accounting, payroll & HR, business advisory and tax.

For further information:

Pia Törnqvist
CMO Phone: +44 (0) 7787 558 193
pia.tornqvist@aspia.se
+46 706 897 659

Antwerp – Innovad®, a leading provider of animal nutrition and health solutions, is pleased to an- nounce that it is acquiring all the shares of Herbonis a Swiss-based company and its affiliates, including Wyreside in the UK. The acquisition aims to strengthen Innovad’s portfolio of natural speciality feed ingredients and align with its strategy of expanding into primary ingredients. Herbonis is recognised as a leader in a niche market and Panbonis, a product containing the plant-based source of the metabolic active form of Vitamin D, represents a unique and highly technical product with proven health benefits in poultry, swine and dairy. From its inception, Innovad has been formulating its products with plant- based ingredients and this acquisition will strengthen its position — adding capacity and knowledge to support the growth in its botanicals, nutraceuticals product portfolio.

Ben Letor, Innovad CEO: “We view Herbonis as a high quality and recognised leader operating in a niche market. Herbonis has an impressive track record, dedicated team, independent mindset, and outstanding know-how on botanicals. Herbonis Group highly scientific and plant-based proposition matches perfectly with Innovad’s strong strategic commitment to becoming the centre of excellence and knowledge in phytogenic and plant-based products. Natural solutions represent a megatrend in our industry to address sustainability objectives as well as consumer demand, provided that such plant-based alternatives are well-researched, well-documented, cost-effective and with the lowest carbon footprint.”

Raetus Boehlen, Herbonis CEO: “Having deep understanding of bioactive plants with proprietary analytical tools, Herbonis has succeeded in bringing to the market an effective 100% plant-based technology. Panbonis has demonstrated its performance and return through its strong customer base & partnership. Many publications and outstanding scientific dossier evidence its unique mode of action. Being able to include Panbonis as part of Innovad’s broader product portfolio will allow Herbonis to tap into new entry points with a broader customer base. It was essential for the owners of Herbonis to hand the company to a group that would continue to invest, support and recognise the value of Herbonis and its team.”

Massimo Neri, Innovad Director Europe: “We are highly motivated to combine Herbonis with Innovad. We believe that Innovad’s strong sales organisation, well-established European footprint and global commercial network perfectly fits with our strategy of delivering the Panbonis brand more directly to end users. With a presence in 75 countries, we expect Innovad’s platform to help accelerate brand awareness and market access for Herbonis’s products. Together, we can create a strong portfolio of innovative and sustainable solutions which will support animal health and welfare.”

Remko Hilhorst, Managing Partner at IK Partners and Advisor to the IK IX Fund: “In today’s volatile environment, it is exciting to be adding Herbonis to Innovad’s product portfolio as we continue to work with the management team to unleash its plan for further sustainable growth. We hope this will help establish the Innovad Group as a global primary producer and leader focused on botanicals, biomonitoring programmes and specialised in feed solutions.“