At the end of March 2010, StepStone Solutions announced its acquisition by one of Europe’s leading private equity investors, HgCapital, to be completed together with the current management team. The deal involves StepStone ASA selling its StepStone Solutions talent management software division to European sector focused private equity investor HgCapital for a purchase price of EUR110 million. The transaction is expected to close by the end of April 2010, subject to usual closing conditions. The software division, which serves more than 1,400 customers, operates in 17 countries and employs around 450 people, will continue to be led by its current Group MD, Matthew Parker, and his management team under HgCapital’s ownership.
StepStone ASA is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Germany-based media company Axel Springer AG, which will continue to own and operate StepStone ASA’s Online job board division as an integral part of its digital strategy. Colin Tenwick, CEO, StepStone ASA commented, “Since 2004 our StepStone Solutions software business has become the leader in the European market for talent acquisition and management solutions, demonstrating strong, profitable growth. It is also now growing well in the US and Asia-Pacific markets. This development is clearly good news for the entire global customer base, who will have the reassurance of strong backing and continued investment in StepStone Solutions’ business strategy.”
“Since Axel Springer has set a clear strategic focus on online job boards for StepStone ASA, the acquisition of the software division by HgCapital will allow the Solutions unit to enter a new phase of expansion under HgCapital’s ownership,” added Dr. Jens Müffelmann, Head of Electronic Media at Axel Springer.HgCapital has a track record of developing its portfolio businesses and a detailed understanding of the software sector. Speaking about the acquisition, Kai Romberg, Director, HgCapital TMT Team said, “We are excited about the opportunity to back StepStone Solution’s management team and help accelerate the company’s growth both organically and by select add-on acquisitions, taking it to the next stage of its development. The business is a strong market leader in Europe and has achieved impressive levels of customer retention.”
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
