10 September: Hg today announces that it has agreed a first investment of Transition Capital in BrightPay, a provider of Accounting and HR payroll software to SMEs in Ireland and the UK.

The terms of the investment are not disclosed.

Hg’s structured minority investment strategy will fund the investment in BrightPay. Transition Capital offers privately-owned businesses an attractive alternative to a minority equity sale, through structured equity, which gives entrepreneurs access to the support of Hg and its network, whilst retaining control of their business.

Based near Dublin, BrightPay provides easy-to-use and cutting-edge software solutions to enable SMEs to manage payroll, supported by excellent customer service. BrightPay’s software is used by over 120,000 employers across the UK and Ireland under two brands, BrightPay and Thesaurus Software.

BrightPay’s business of Accounting and HR payroll software is a very familiar sector to Hg and represents the 10th investment in businesses within this space. Payroll in Ireland is scheduled to undergo significant change from January 2019, as Ireland rolls out PAYE modernisation, which will require employers to report PAYE in real time to the Irish Revenue Commissioners (“Revenue”). BrightPay has invested significantly ahead of this change to prepare to support Irish SMEs through this transition.

Peter Miholich, Director at Hg, said: “We have been really impressed by the dedication of the BrightPay team to delivering great software and outstanding service to their customers. We look forward to partnering with Paul, Ross and the team to take BrightPay to the next stage of its development, adding our experience and strong track-record of working with successful businesses in Accounting and Payroll software.”

Paul Byrne, Founder and Managing Director at BrightPay, said: “Hg is a hugely credible investor in this sector and it’s great to secure an investment from a firm who both knows our market and has the experience to help us develop the business.”