Visma attracts new investors for further international expansion in a transaction valuing the company at EUR 19 billion
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Investment follows another period of strong growth and continued international expansion, with now 17-years of uninterrupted, year-on-year, revenue and EBITDA growth (18% and 22% CAGR respectively, during the period).
Visma will welcome around 20 new investors to the shareholder register, worth over €1bn of equity investment. In addition the transaction will result in c. €3bn new investment from existing shareholders including majority investor, Hg.
With revenue of €2.4 billion, Visma will continue its growth strategy of international expansion and product innovation, supported by a solid and knowledgeable shareholder base.
London, UK and Oslo, Norway. 21 December 2023. Visma, a leading provider of mission-critical cloud software in Europe and Latin-America, today announces that it has expanded its shareholder base through a secondary sale to leading international shareholders, to support further international growth.
The transaction, which values Visma at EUR 19 billion, will welcome around 20 new investors to the shareholder register, worth over €1bn of equity investment, with new investors including Altaroc, Jane Street, NPS and NYC Retirement System.
The transaction will also result in around €3bn new investment from existing shareholders, including Hg, who will continue its 17-year long investment in the business with a majority stake, in addition to a group of co-investors including ICG, TPG and Visma management.
“We are delighted to receive this further vote of confidence from Hg and other leading investors, in a transaction that confirms our stellar development and attractive outlook. Visma delivers the digital tools that businesses need to drive efficiency, innovate and stay competitive. Supported by a solid and knowledgeable shareholder base, we are perfectly positioned to continue our unique growth journey”, says Merete Hverven, CEO of Visma.
Visma’s growth journey
Today Visma is the largest privately-owned software business in Europe, and a leading provider of cloud accounting and ERP solutions to small and medium sized businesses in the region. After a period of significant international expansion, entering France, Germany, Portugal, Peru and Iceland in the last two years alone, the Group is currently present in 28 countries with more than 15,000 employees.
Meanwhile, divestments of non-core assets within IT consulting and cloud infrastructure services in 2022 has further focused the company’s business model on standardised SaaS (Software as a Service) products to the private and public sectors. Visma’s annualized repeatable revenue (ARR) stood at EUR 2.2 billion at the end of Q3 2023, representing a growth of 17 percent from the same period last year and 17 years of uninterrupted, year-on-year, revenue and EBITDA growth (18% and 22% CAGR respectively during the period).
“Visma’s success is a result of the fantastic efforts of our highly skilled and engaged employees. With our industry-leading investments in product development and AI-driven automation of critical business processes, we remain well equipped to capture the strong growth in digital services”, Hverven adds.
Nic Humphries, Senior Partner at Hg, said: “Today Visma is Europe’s largest private equity owned software business, growing twice as fast now compared to when we first invested in 2006, despite having become a business that’s over 20 times larger. This incredible achievement is the result of an investment in modern SaaS products over ten years ago, progressed by a thirst for innovation and a world-class management team led by Merete. We welcome our new investors and look forward to the next chapter of this European tech success story.”
For more information, please contact:
Lage Bøhren, Director of Communications at Visma
+47 921 57 801
lage.bohren@visma.com
Tom Eckersley, Head of Marketing at Hg
+44 20 8148 5401
Tom.Eckersley@hgcapital.com
About Visma
Visma is a leading provider of mission-critical cloud software, with revenue of € 2.06 billion in 2022, 15,000 employees and 1.6 million customers across Europe and Latin America. By simplifying and automating the work of businesses and organisations of all sizes, we enable a more efficient and prosperous society. Visit us at visma.com.
About Hg
Hg is a leading investor in European and transatlantic software and services businesses. Hg’s support combines deep end-market knowledge with world class operational resources, together providing compelling support to entrepreneurial leaders looking to scale their business – businesses that are well invested, enduring and serve their customers well. Hg manages over $65 billion in funds under management and supports a portfolio of more than 50 businesses, worth over $135 billion aggregate enterprise value, with over 100,000 employees, consistently growing revenues at more than 20% annually.