ECI Partners

ECI Partners
Industry Private equity
Founded 1976 (1976)
Headquarters London and Manchester, United Kingdom
Products Private equity funds, Buyouts
Website www.ecipartners.com

ECI Partners is a UK private equity group which celebrated its 40th anniversary in June 2016[1] having been established by the Bank of England in 1976.[2] It invests in small to medium-sized companies headquartered in the United Kingdom.

It organised its first management buyout for Ansafone in 1980 and was a founder member of the British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association. In the first decade of ECI's investment they were active across a range of investments including syndicated transactions; early investments included Williams Holdings - owner of Chubb and Kidd - founded by Nigel Rudd and Brian McGowan, and Shanks & McEwan.

From the start of the 1990s (ECI 4) the exclusive focus became UK mid-market buyouts investing in the likes of National Express and Bloomsbury Publishing.

The turn of the millennium saw ECI raise ECI 7 with leading growth investments including Thinkmoney and LateRooms.

In July 2018 ECI announced the first and final closing of its eleventh buyout fund, ECI 11[3]. ECI launched the fundraise mid-April 2018 with a target fund size of £650m and closed at the hard cap of £700m less than three months later. ECI 11 was raised without using any placement agent support.

Investments

Recent investments include Arkessa, The Clear Group, Make It Cheaper, Edenhouse, IT Lab (IT Managed Services),[4] Imagesound (a leading supplier of audio and screen media),[5] and MPM (premium natural pet food company natural).[6]

Other current investments include Tusker,[7] Evans Cycles,[8] Investis,[9] Auction Technology Group,[10], and Avantia, a leading online home insurance company that trades under the HomeProtect brand[11].

Exits

ECI's most recent exit was the sale of Great Rail Journeys in June 2018, generating a 3.6x return.[12]

In June 2017 ECI sold Kelvin Hughes to Hensoldt, (formerly Airbus Defence Electronics), which generated a 3.3x return.[13]

In February 2017 ECI announced the sale of Clarke Energy to Kohler Co.[14]

The sale of Reed & Mackay [15] (premium corporate travel company) in August 2016 was ECI's 100th exit since 1990, and generated a multiple of 3.4x cost to investors.

In February 2016, ECI sold Citation, a provider of HR, employment law, and health & safety solutions to 16,000 SMEs, to HGCapital[16] for a reported £185m.[17]

In June 2015 it sold Fourth Hospitality, a restaurant management software firm to Insight Venture Partners.[18]

In February 2015 ECI sold Wireless Logic, an M2M managed service provider, to CVC Capital Partners.[19]

In October 2014 ECI sold XLN Telecom to the company's management and Blackstone’s credit business GSO Capital Partners generating a 3x return on its investment.[20]

In March 2014 ECI sold CarTrawler to BC Partners returning 6x money to investors.[21]

In February 2014 ECI sold M2 Digital to The Rigby Group through its technology brand SCC (Specialist Computer Centres).[22]

ECI sold healthcare IT company Ascribe to AIM-listed clinical software supplier EMIS Health Group in September 2013 generating a 2.1x return.[23]

ECI Growth Survey

The ECI Growth Survey[24] is the only survey in the UK focused exclusively on growth companies. It was launched in 2010 to give owners and directors of growth companies an opportunity to voice their opinion and influence the economic debate. A number of influential figures have been involved in the survey over the years including Mark Prisk, Karan Bilimoria, Baron Bilimoria, Howard Davies, Sir Danny Alexander,[25] Carolyn Fairbairn[26] and most recently Sir John Timpson.[27]

References

  1. ↑ "ECI celebrates 40th anniversary with two promotions". Real Deals.
  2. ↑ "Bank of England Quarterly Bulletin Volume 16 1976 page 301" (PDF). Bank of England.
  3. ↑ "Fast growth is attraction as ECI raises record fund". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  4. ↑ "ECI snaps up stake in IT firm behind McLaren supercars". Telegraph. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  5. ↑ "ECI tunes into in- store music group". Insider Media. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  6. ↑ "Private equity firm ECI gobbles up gastro pet food company MPM". Telegraph. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  7. ↑ "ECI Partners invests in Tusker". Fleet News. 19 February 2015. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  8. ↑ "Sale of Evans Cycles to ECI Partners agreed". Cycling Weekly. 1 May 2015. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  9. ↑ "ECI backs Investis to accelerate its growth strategy". UK Business Angels Association. 8 December 2014. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  10. ↑ "ECI to buy antiques bible maker ATG". The Telegraph. 17 May 2014. Retrieved 17 May 2014.
  11. ↑ "ECI Partners underpins £57m Avantia buy-out". The Telegraph. 10 March 2014. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
  12. ↑ "Equity firm to embark on £100m travel deal". The Sunday Times. 30 June 2018.
  13. ↑ "A strong return is on the radar for one private equity firm as Hensoldt snaps up surveillance business Kelvin Hughes". CityA.M. 29 June 2017.
  14. ↑ "ECI more than doubles money on exit of Clarke Energy to Kohler". Real Deals. 2 February 2017.
  15. ↑ "ECI and Livingbridge reap 3.4x on Reed & Mackay exit". Unquote. 4 August 2016.
  16. ↑ "ECI makes 5.4x on Citation sale to HgCapital". Real Deals. 15 February 2016.
  17. ↑ "Fast growing Citation is snapped up by Hg Capital for £185m". AlManchester Evening News. 15 February 2016.
  18. ↑ "RESTAURANT SOFTWARE PROVIDER BOUGHT BY US FIRM". Insider Media. 24 June 2015. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  19. ↑ "ECI scores 6.1x return through CVC's acquisition of Wireless Logic". AltAssets. 10 February 2015.
  20. ↑ "ECI reaps 3x on XLN exit". Unquote. 6 October 2014.
  21. ↑ "ECI reaps 6x in sale of CarTrawler to BC Partners | Unquote". unquote.com. Retrieved 2017-08-31.
  22. ↑ "Print services firm M2 Digital bought by SCC". 18 February 2014.
  23. ↑ "ECI makes 2.1x on Ascribe exit". Unquote. 13 September 2013.
  24. ↑ "Keep the single market and access to EU workers, Britain's high-growth companies plea". The Telegraph. 27 August 2016. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
  25. ↑ "Fast-growing companies opposed to leaving EU, says ECI Partners survey". www.yorkshirepost.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-08-30.
  26. ↑ Gill, Oliver (2016-08-30). "Gazelles chase growth despite Brexit vote". Retrieved 2017-08-30.
  27. ↑ Begum, Shelina (2017-08-29). "Gazelles' shrugging off Brexit uncertainties". men. Retrieved 2017-08-30.
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