Annual Buyout Review 2020 edition Unquote Annual Buyout Review 2020 Review Buyout Annual Unquote A unique angle Discover a new competitive edge Specialist news and intelligence that grows businesses Business intelligence first acuris.com 00_Cover_ABR2019.indd 1 17/03/2020 16:10 Spot the opportunities in fixed income The trusted provider of data, news and analysis on global leveraged credit. EMEA +44(0)20 3741 1002 Business intelligence first [email protected] Contents Introduction 44 Iberia – Despite political upheaval and 04 Executive summary – Market value macroeconomic forecasts casting a gloomy softened slightly in 2019, but remained over shadow over Iberia’s growth, the buyout €200bn, propped up by strong ongoing market in the region struck new records dealflow at the upper end of the size ranges 52 Italy – A stagnant economy has left Regional analysis Italy struggling to reduce its national debt, 08 Benelux – Dealflow was strong in Benelux, but these worries did not deter small-cap and a further uptick could be on the cards investors or the fundraising market for 2020 and beyond, as regional players 34 Maxence Bloch, wrap up their fundraising efforts 60 Nordic – The Nordic region reported Goodwin, says French PE’s biggest challenge in 2020 sluggish activity in 2019 amid low macro will be sourcing 16 CEE – As CEE’s economies continue to growth, with weak activity in the industrial mature, and consumer spending among a and technology sectors particularly growing middle-class escalates, PE must strike a balance between price expectations 70 UK & Ireland – Buyout activity held up and acceptable returns well in the UK & Ireland, despite political uncertainty and low growth in the retail 24 DACH – As growth near ground to a halt sector. Meanwhile, fundraising prospects in the region’s economies, DACH’s private abound for the year ahead equity community bucked the trend with a record year for buyout activity Appendix 80 Fundraising – As the trend towards more 24 Emanuel Strehle, Hengeler Mueller, believes 34 France – The country finally became the capital being held by fewer GPs becomes the abundance of dry busiest buyout market in Europe last year, more entrenched, the closing of a few super- powder will drive dealflow and record fundraising in 2019 paves the funds in 2019 has launched the market into way for even busier times ahead uncharted waters www.unquote.com A wealth of further information is available through our website. This includes breaking news and analysis from each European market, features, commentary, 52 Eugenio De Blasio, blogs and video covering fund launches, changes in strategy and people moves, Green Arrow Capital, and in-depth analysis of every deal featured in this issue recommends multi-asset diversification ANNUAL BUYOUT REVIEW 2020 1 01 ABR 2019-Contents.indd 1 17/03/2020 15:59 Julian Longhurst Greg Gille Head of data & research Allocate Editor T: +44 20 3741 1382 E: [email protected] +44 (0)20 3741 1381 [email protected] Private Capital 2020 Denise Ko Genovese Associate editor T: +44 (0) 20 3741 1192 18-19 June 2020 E: [email protected] Last hurrah Alessia Argentieri Senior reporter uropean private equity enjoyed The strong fundraising haul of 2019 The Grove T: +44 (0) 20 3741 1383 another standout year in should have also pointed at more to E: [email protected] E2019, and this was abundantly come, as GPs keep their foot on the England apparent when looking at activity gas to deploy a combined €112bn Katharine Hidalgo in the buyout market. The 1,127 raised across 96 buyout vehicles Reporter transactions recorded by Unquote targeting Europe last year. T: +44 20 3741 1497 E: [email protected] were a new high-water mark, finally But these statistics - as well as eclipsing the long-standing 2007 reactions and positive expectations record. from market participants from all over Harriet Matthews It is mostly the sense of momentum Europe - were compiled in early 2020, Reporter T: +44 20 3741 1388 that has been a key takeaway from the prior to the coronavirus pandemic E: [email protected] past couple of editions of the Annual sweeping through Europe and the US. Buyout Review: last year was the third It is of course too early to precisely Mariia Bondarenko consecutive 12-month period in which quantify the impact of such an Data reporter the 1,000-deal mark was passed, and unexpected and rapidly evolving T: +44 20 3741 1384 the contrast with the 700 transactions situation, with ocial government E: [email protected] recorded per year on average across advice on mitigation measures and the 2010-2015 period is striking. And their impact on business still varying while aggregate value finally halted across most countries. But there is its climb, it still remained above the widespread consensus that deal- The Unquote Annual Buyout Review is published by €200bn mark, which was hitherto only Mergermarket Ltd making will be severely impacted for 10 Queen Street Place, London, EC4R 1BE reached in 2018 and the 2006-2007 Q2 2020 at least, as travel restrictions +44 (0)20 3741 1000 boom years. and social distancing take their toll on Entire contents © 2020 Mergermarket Ltd This momentum has been processes and due diligence. ISSN 0956-2698 noticeable – and most welcome – More importantly, the expected All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be outside the typical UK bellwether, too. economic shock and the impact on reproduced, stored in a database or electronic retrieval Future-proof your private markets strategy system, transmitted in any form or by any means, electronical, France, Italy and Iberia in particular portfolios across the board - beyond mechanical, photocopied, recorded or otherwise, without all reached record levels in dealflow. the immediate existential threat to prior written permission from the publishers. Take the big ideas infl uencing private markets investment. France has become the largest many assets in the travel and leisure Copy & Production Editor – Tim Kimber Combine it with bold thinkers and great networking with 300 major investors. Managing Director – Catherine Lewis buyout market in Europe in volume sectors - should all but guarantee that terms, vindicating local players that the activity peak recorded in 2019 is For advertising enquiries – Thomas MacKinnon Add the leafy surroundings of The Grove to get some perspective. +44 (0)20 3741 1389 [email protected] have for years extolled the potential unlikely to be repeated this year. For subscription enquiries – Enrico Cattarossi of a deep and mature business It remains to be seen whether +44 (0)20 3741 1329 [email protected] The outcome is practical ideas that leave you better-informed about investment strategy. ecosystem. As for southern European Europe’s economies can overcome countries, their continued rebound this challenge soon enough for GPs Join the discussion at Allocate 2020. has hinted at a more attractive status to resume sensibly deploying the vast among LPs, beyond opportunistic amounts of capital allocated to private distressed plays. equity in recent months. Search “Allocate Private Capital” to fi nd out more 2 WWW.UNQUOTE.COM 02-03 ABR 2019-Edi Events.indd 2 17/03/2020 15:08 Allocate 19_Ad_V9_AP.indd 1 2/19/20 1:08 PM Allocate Private Capital 2020 18-19 June 2020 The Grove England Future-proof your private markets strategy Take the big ideas infl uencing private markets investment. Combine it with bold thinkers and great networking with 300 major investors. Add the leafy surroundings of The Grove to get some perspective. The outcome is practical ideas that leave you better-informed about investment strategy. Join the discussion at Allocate 2020. Search “Allocate Private Capital” to fi nd out more 02-03 ABR 2019-Edi Events.indd 3 17/03/2020 15:08 Allocate 19_Ad_V9_AP.indd 1 2/19/20 1:08 PM OVERVIEW Executive summary Deal numbers keep on rising Market value softened slightly in 2019, but remained over €200bn, propped up by strong ongoing dealflow at the upper end of the size ranges orward momentum for the European buyout While deal volume rose by 4%, the value of machine was comfortably maintained in deals fell by the same margin, though it remained F2019. The 1,127 deals recorded represent a above the €200bn mark for only the second time high-water mark for the industry and is the third since the two boom years of 2006 and 2007. successive year the 1,000-deal barrier has been The fact the decline was so modest is due to exceeded; dial back a decade and the average the strength in the large-cap market: although annual total for the 10 years from 2000 to 2009 the number and value of €1bn+ transactions fell, stood at just 600 deals per annum. there were 84 deals worth €500m or more in 2019 versus 75 the year before. On their own, the volume of deals in the €500m-1bn bracket rose Private-equity-backed buyouts in Europe by 52%, offsetting much of the drop in the mega- deal bracket. Lower down the scale there was Volume Value (€bn) solid growth in the small-cap and lower-mid-cap 1,200 250 segments, which rose by 10% and 8% respectively. 1,000 200 Buy, then build 800 The wall of dry powder is undoubtedly key in driving 150 the relentless rise in buyouts, but it masks another 600 Volume 100 trend that has been emerging in recent years. 400 (€bn) Value Faced with the increasingly dicult task of finding 50 attractive, well-run and sensibly priced targets, 200 many GPs have ramped up their buy-and-build 0 0 programmes. This has a couple of important side- 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 effects: firstly, larger investors are more likely to be 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 seen buying up smaller assets (thereby reducing the Volume 810 892 1049 1082 1127 potential deal universe for GPs normally operating Value (€bn) 135 129 154 210 202 in those segments) on the basis that they will make multiple add-on commitments; and there has been Average value (€m) 167 145 147 194 179 a sharp increase in expansion deals, under which Source: Unquote Data category Unquote classifies funded bolt-ons.