BC Partners sells minority stake in Mergermarket Group to GIC

LONDON – 30 June 2017 – Funds advised by BC Partners (“BC Partners”), a leading private equity firm, have reached an agreement to sell a c.30% stake in the Mergermarket Group (“Mergermarket” or “the company”) to GIC, Singapore’s

Founded in London in 2000, Mergermarket is a global financial intelligence company, providing corporate financial news and analysis through a wide variety of different products. It offers proprietary, forward-looking and actionable intelligence that cannot be accessed elsewhere, to a wide range of investor, advisory and corporate subscribers. Today, the company has over 1,200 staff in 65 different locations worldwide.

Mergermarket was acquired by BC Partners via a carve-out from Pearson plc in 2014 for £382 million and since that time has delivered impressive double-digit top-line growth each year, with EBITDA approximately doubling over the period. BC Partners has worked closely with the Mergermarket management team on a number of key initiatives to accelerate this growth, including transforming its IT platform, enhancing the data offering, and supporting seven strategic add-on acquisitions that have expanded the business into new product areas.

Following the transaction, BC Partners will continue to hold more than a 60% stake in Mergermarket and will work closely alongside GIC as the company embarks on its next chapter of growth.

Nikos Stathopoulos, Managing Partner at BC Partners, commented: "BC Partners invested in Mergermarket due to its must-have data and information, attractive subscription-based business model, consistent track record of growth and strong management team. The company has gone from strength to strength over the past three years of our ownership and we are delighted to welcome GIC as our new partner in Mergermarket’s next growth phase."

Choo Yong Cheen, CIO of Private Equity at GIC, commented: "Mergermarket is a clear leader in its sector led by a strong management team. The Company provides subscribers with essential and often proprietary content, driving strong renewal rates and impressive long-term growth. We look forward to working with BC Partners and supporting the business in achieving its ambitions over the coming years."

Hamilton Matthews, CEO at the Mergermarket Group, commented: "We are delighted to welcome GIC as our new partner alongside BC Partners. Our business has grown tremendously and it is a testament to the hard work of everyone at the group that we are now joined on our ongoing journey by another prestigious investor such as GIC. We look forward to working with both BC Partners and GIC in exploring the exciting opportunities in front of us."

About BC Partners

BC Partners is a leading international private equity firm with over €15 billion of assets under management. Established in 1986, BC Partners has played an active role in developing the European buy-out market for nearly three decades. BC Partners executives operate as an integrated team through the firm's offices in Europe and North America, acquiring and developing businesses to create value in partnership with management. Since inception, BC Partners has completed 95 investments in companies with a total enterprise value of €118 billion and is currently investing its tenth private equity fund. For more information, please visit www.bcpartners.com.

About GIC

GIC is a leading global investment firm with well over US$100 billion in assets under management. Established in 1981 to secure the financial future of Singapore, the firm manages Singapore’s foreign reserves. A disciplined long-term value investor, GIC is uniquely positioned for investments across a wide range of asset classes, including real estate, private equity, equities and fixed income. GIC has investments in over 40 countries and has been investing in emerging markets for more than two decades.

Headquartered in Singapore, GIC employs over 1,300 people across 10 offices in key financial cities worldwide. For more information about GIC, please visit www.gic.com.sg

About the Mergermarket Group

The Mergermarket Group is a media company which provides the advisory, corporate and financial communities with forward-looking intelligence, analysis and data that you simply can't get anywhere else.

Many of the world’s principal advisory firms, investment banks, law firms, hedge funds, private equity firms and corporates subscribe to our products. The unparalleled intelligence they have access to enables them to remain firmly on top of the latest market developments. And our email alert service allows our subscribers to track all those developments in real time on their favorite mobile device.

Founded in 2000, we’ve expanded rapidly and now have over 1,200 staff in 65 locations around the world. We’re widely recognised as the most significant provider of global corporate financial news, intelligence and analysis, and it’s our 800-strong team of specialist journalists and analysts that sets us apart.

The proprietary intelligence and in-depth analysis they produce enables our subscribers to spot new business opportunities, increase their revenues and keep several steps ahead of the competition. For more information, please visit www.mergermarketgroup.com