Rivean Capital (“Rivean”) is pleased to announce that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in Acture Group (“Acture” or “the Group”), a leading provider of holistic employee welfare solutions, from IK Partners (“IK”). The stake is being acquired from the IK Small Cap II (“IK SC II”) Fund, with Co-Founder and current CEO Maudie Derks, as well as the management team, reinvesting alongside Rivean.

Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, Acture is a specialised outsourced service provider supporting corporates and staffing agencies in managing employee absence. The Group has an integrated approach to employee welfare, offering complementary services such as absence management and reduction, including case management and reintegration programmes, combined with an absence insurance proposition.

Acture’s heritage and longstanding experience as a pioneer in the private social security services market in the Netherlands have resulted in large amounts of valuable data being translated into innovative case management solutions supported by proprietary technology. With IK’s support since 2020, the Group completed four add-on acquisitions in the Netherlands and three in Germany, to further complement its proposition and expand its geographical footprint. Acture is also currently rolling out a mental health absence management platform, Evermood, in the Netherlands and the DACH region. Through its full-service offering, Acture is well positioned to fully unburden customers who are confronted with labour market shortages and rising absenteeism costs. At present, the Group employs approximately 390 full-time employees across its offices in the Netherlands and Germany.

Ready for the next phase of growth

The Group’s ambition to reinforce its position as a leading European provider of specialised outsourced services and insurance products requires further investment in the organisation to help develop its digital offering and platform capabilities. With Rivean’s support, Acture will continue along its international growth trajectory, accelerating the execution of its strategic growth plan and transforming from a leading Dutch player in the social security market, to a European total employee welfare platform.

Maudie Derks, CEO of Acture, said: “With the recent add-on acquisitions, Acture has taken its first steps into the international arena while simultaneously expanding its offering with a tech-driven wellbeing proposition. Through the new partnership with Rivean, we plan to accelerate our international roll-out, advance our ambitious growth trajectory and further develop the total employee welfare management concept. We would like to thank IK for their support over the past few years and look forward to joining forces with Rivean.”

Nikolai Pronk, Managing Partner at Rivean Capital, commented: “We are very impressed by Acture’s leading market position, supporting its customers with an integrated offering and with a track record of consistent growth. We look forward to partnering with Maudie and the management team to support Acture in its next development and international growth phase.”

Sander van Vreumingen, Partner at IK and Advisor to the IK SC II Fund, added: “Over the past four years, we have had the pleasure of working very closely with Maudie and her team. From the start, we have been impressed with the combined professionalism and expertise of the team, which has enabled both the successful implementation of multiple organic growth initiatives and execution of several bolt-on acquisitions. We are proud of all that we have achieved in partnership with Acture and would like to wish Maudie and her team all the very best in the next stage of their journey.”

Completion of the transaction is subject to obtaining merger clearance, AFM and works council approval.

For further questions, please contact:

Rivean Capital
Maikel Wieland
Partner – Head of Investor Relations & Co-Investments
Phone: +41 43 268 20 30
m.wieland@riveancapital.com

IK Partners
Vidya Verlkumar
Head of Communications and Marketing
Phone: +44 7787 558 193
vidya.verlkumar@ikpartners.com

We are pleased to share our 2023/2024 Sustainability Report “Creating Value with Responsibility”.

This report provides insights into how we integrate sustainability considerations in both value creation and protection activities, in line with our fiduciary duties. It also shines a spotlight on best practice examples from companies within our portfolio.

Our most notable highlights and achievements include:

• Developing a new ESG Roadmap for 2024-2025;
• Implementing a tool to conduct portfolio-wide climate and biodiversity risks screening;
• Publishing our inaugural Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures Report; and
• Becoming an Early Adopter of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures.

To read more, please download the report using the button on the left.

If you have any questions, please contact:

ESG
esg@ikpartners.com

Lyon, December 3rd, 2024. Blanchon Group (“Blanchon” or “the Group”) announces the acquisition of Dr Schutz (known under Dr Schutz and Eukula brands), a German family-owned business specialising in the renovation, protection and maintenance of floors, including vinyl, epoxy and wooden floors for commercial and sport segments. For more than 70 years, Dr Schutz has been developing, manufacturing and selling speciality polyurethane systems for heavy renovation of vinyl and epoxy floors as well as flooring care products, dedicated to professional customers.

Supported by IK Partners and Abenex, this acquisition is part of Blanchon Group’s strategy to accelerate international growth and become a European leader in protection, renovation, maintenance and decoration of wood and vinyl flooring and surfaces. With a commercial presence in more than 30 countries and exclusive partners in key regions, Dr Schutz operates from five main sites in Germany, Poland, Switzerland, the UK and USA. These will be added to the well-established Blanchon subsidiaries to broaden the Group’s geographical presence.

This acquisition leverages the complementary combination of the Blanchon and Dr Schutz product lines, their strong brand awareness and their respective client portfolios. It positions Blanchon Group to become the leading floor renovation specialist for professional customers, solidifying its position in the DACH region, the Netherlands and Nordics, amongst others.

The 90 highly skilled employees of Dr Schutz are now joining Blanchon Group’s experienced and multi-functional teams. Dr Karl-Michael Schutz and his top Management remain fully involved in the company and he will take over the overall responsibility for Germany and the vinyl floor renovation business segment.

Guillaume Clément, President and CEO of the Blanchon Group, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Dr Schutz into the Blanchon family. This acquisition is a significant milestone in the Group’s almost 200-year history. Through this acquisition, Germany, the largest flooring market in Europe, will become one of our most important markets, alongside France. A strong team of professionals led by Dr Karl-Michael Schutz are joining us and will ensure our company’s continued development for years to come. The acquisition of Dr Schutz will enable us to provide our customers with a full product range in the flooring segment, including specialty systems for heavy renovation and a full range of wood and vinyl care products. Step by step, we are building a truly international company dedicated to indoor and outdoor surface care. Dr Schutz is a perfect match”.

Dr Karl-Michael Schutz, co-owner of Dr Schutz stated: “We are very pleased to join Blanchon Group. Our motto ‘We care about floors’ fits perfectly with Blanchon’s ethos and we share the same DNA and values. Benefitting from its strong reputation in Europe, as well as its solid R&D expertise, the Group has an offering that is highly complementary to Dr Schutz’s technical product range and value proposition. Joining forces will ensure strong development, benefitting our employees, customers and partners”.

Contact details:
Blanchon Group: Béatrice Gladel, bgladel@blanchon.com
Dr Schutz: Dr Karl-Michael Schutz, kms@dr-schutz.com

Relevant websites: blanchongroup.com; dr-schutz.com; bigler-lacke.swiss;
rigoverffabriek.nl; ciranova.eu; syntilor.com; ikpartners.com; and abenex.com

IK Partners (“IK”) is pleased to announce that the IK X Fund has signed an agreement to acquire Driescher GmbH (Moosburg and Eisleben) (“DRIESCHER” or “the Group”), a leading German manufacturer of high-tech medium and low voltage switches and switchgears. IK is acquiring its stake in DRIESCHER from the family shareholders, who will all be reinvesting. As part of the transaction, the co-founders and co-shareholders of the Czech subsidary, DRIBO, spol. s r.o. (“DRIBO”), will be selling their shares and reinvesting into the Group. Financial terms of the transaction are not disclosed.

Established over 85 years ago, DRIESCHER is a leading provider of critical grid components and a reliable partner to many large municipal utilities, industrial customers and railway operators. The Group offers a comprehensive portfolio of products and services, necessary for the expansion of energy grids and the modernisation of existing infrastructure.

DRIESCHER excels in providing SF₆-free, air-insulated components designed to enhance protection and safety, serving as essential infrastructure for managing power flows and voltage conversion within energy grids. With a reputation for innovation and deep engineering expertise, the Group offers tailored solutions to meet a wide range of customer needs.

As a trusted partner to many organisations, DRIESCHER plays an important role in advancing the energy transition by improving grid reliability, expanding capacity, supporting the integration of renewable energy and fostering the shift towards broader electrification. Today, the Group has approximately 500 employees, based across four production sites in Germany and the Czech Republic.

With the support of IK, DRIESCHER aims to strengthen its core business by: engaging both existing and new customers; driving continuous product innovation; expanding operations in Germany and entering into other international markets; as well as enhancing aftersales services. The Group may also consider value-accretive bolt-on acquisitions.

Doris and Christoph Driescher, Family Shareholders of DRIESCHER, commented: “With a history of over 85 years, we take pride in the legacy built by our grandfathers, our fathers and the dedicated employees of DRIESCHER. Together with the management team, we are thrilled to partner with IK as DRIESCHER enters the next stage of its development. IK has convinced us with its expertise, values, cultural alignment and vision for the future of our Group, making this the right step to initiate the succession for DRIESCHER.”

Frank Hegenbart and Thomas Lehner, Managing Directors at DRIESCHER, added: “Our leadership team is very much looking forward to the partnership with IK. We are confident that, with the experience of our employees and the support of IK’s team, we will continue our path of sustainable growth with technologically leading products and excellent service for our steadily growing customer base.”

Dalibor Bartoš and Tamara Ottichová, Managing Directors at DRIBO, commented: “DRIBO and DRIESCHER have a joint history of almost 30 years and this new partnership represents a significant milestone in the Group’s development. We are looking forward to working with the team at IK to accelerate future growth.”

Anders Petersson, Managing Partner at IK Partners and Advisor to the IK X Fund,said: “DRIESCHER has established itself as a leading supplier of critical components of energy grids and is well-positioned for growth, driven by long-term market trends that include the need to modernise aging electrical grid infrastructure, enable the integration of new renewable energy sources and expand capacity to meet the rising demand for electricity. We would like to extend our sincere thanks to the family shareholders of DRIESCHER for choosing IK to be the Group’s new partner. We value the confidence placed in us and are very much looking forward to working with the management team in this next phase of DRIESCHER’s growth.”

For further questions, please contact:

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

Brussels/Rueil-Malmaison, 6 November 2024 – Cobepa is pleased to announce that it has entered into exclusive discussions with IK Partners (“IK”), ISAI Gestion (“ISAI”) and Bertrand Liber to acquire a majority stake in Ascentiel Groupe (“Ascentiel” or “the Group”), a leading digital insurance brokerage platform providing Property & Casualty (“P&C”) cover for individuals and small businesses in several specialty niches. The acquisition will be made in partnership with the management team and is subject to consultation with the works council. The transaction is expected to close before the end of 2024 and financial terms are not disclosed.

Founded in 1970, Ascentiel has established itself as a leading digital brokerage platform specialising in the distribution and management of non-life insurance contracts for both individuals and professionals. Having developed significant expertise in the field of car insurance, the Group mainly focuses on near-to-sub-standard motor insurance risks, leveraging the prominence of its flagship brand Assurpeople.com and its fully digital customer experience. The Group covers the entire insurance distribution cycle, from product co-development with insurers to underwriting or contract and claim management.

Over recent years, Ascentiel has continued to diversify its offering to include attractive new specialty products, most notably through the highly successful launch of Airbag, a wholesale brokerage platform specialised in inherent defect insurance for construction professionals. Since then and with the support of IK and ISAI, the Group has achieved several strategic objectives and successfully executed add-on acquisitions, including Atara in 2022 and NIBW in 2024. The acquisition of Atara strengthened the Group’s position in the pet insurance sector, while the acquisition of NIBW facilitated the Group’s geographic expansion into Spain and Portugal. At present, Ascentiel employs over 180 people who are based across its headquarters in Rueil-Malmaison as well as its offices in Aix-en-Provence and Madrid. In partnership with leading insurance companies operating in France, Ascentiel manages contracts for over 220,000 end-clients.

For further questions, please contact:

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

Renta Group Oy (“Renta Group” or “Renta”) acquires Tunnel Support AS and Tunnel Support Sverige AB (together “Tunnel Support” or “the Company”), from Andersen Mek Verksted AS. Tunnel Support is a rental company offering specialised machinery for tunnelling infrastructure projects across Norway and Sweden. The Company is headquartered in Bergen, Norway.

With the acquisition, Renta significantly strengthens its offering and market position in the tunnelling infrastructure rental segment. Tunnel Support is a growing company with strong profitability and a modern fleet consisting of machines from high-quality OEMs. Renta’s objective, together with the management of Tunnel Support, is to seek further growth in the rental of specialised tunnelling machines, while also capturing cross-selling synergies between the Company and Renta’s general rental operations.

The acquisition was completed on 31 October 2024.

Leif-Martin Drange, Managing Director at Renta Norway, said: “Tunnel Support provides high-quality specialised equipment and has highly skilled employees. I am looking forward to joining forces and combining Tunnel Support’s expertise with Renta’s broad depot network and offering. With the acquisition, we will strengthen our overall market position and be able to provide an even more comprehensive offering to the customers of both companies.”

Kato Stien, CEO of Tunnel Support AS, said: “We are looking forward to becoming part of Renta’s professional organisation. We can utilize our specialised equipment and technical expertise while benefitting from Renta’s broad presence and digital solutions. Together, we will be able to offer a complete solution that will help our customers operate more efficiently and sustainably.”

Enquiries: ir@renta.com