Altor Fund III and Bure Equity AB have signed an agreement to acquire Max Matthiessen Holding AB (“Max Matthiessen” or the “Company”), the leading independent Swedish adviser within pension insurance, life insurance and long-term savings, from the Swedish National Debt Office (the “National Debt Office”). As part of the transaction, key employees of Max Matthiessen will be offered to become co-owners in the Company.
• Max Matthiessen will continue its successful strategy as the leading independent Swedish adviser within pension insurance, life insurance and long-term savings • The current management team led by the CEO, Christoffer Folkebo, will remain in place • Max Matthiessen will remain an independent company directly owned by key employees, Altor and Bure
• An appropriate and transparent profit sharing system for management and employees of Max Matthiessen will be put in place • The total purchase consideration for all shares in Max Matthiessen is SEK 500 million, to be adjusted for any dividends paid prior to closing. SEK 150 million of the purchase consideration will be paid with interest at the latest on 30 April 2010
Altor and Bure have also entered into an agreement with the National Debt Office to acquire all shares in Carnegie Investment Bank AB (”Carnegie”), a leading independent Nordic investment bank. Please refer to the separate press release for further details.
“We are very pleased to have reached an agreement to acquire Max Matthiessen together with key employees and are excited about working with Christoffer Folkebo and his team to further develop the business. Max Matthiessen is the clear market leader and we believe the Company, through focus on innovation and further building on its customer base, can continue to grow strongly in the future”, said Harald Mix, Managing Partner at Altor Equity Partners.
“Max Matthiessen is the leading independent pension, insurance and savings adviser in Sweden and we feel privileged to be part of the business going forward. Altor and Bure represent long-term owners and it is our firm belief that, together with management, we will be able to contribute to further strengthening Max Matthiessen’s unrivalled franchise in its field”, said Patrik Tigerschiöld, Chairman of Bure.
“I am confident that Max Matthiessen will continue to offer the most competitive client solutions and further strengthen our leadership in the market. I am excited about embarking on the next phase of the Company’s development and look forward to having Altor and Bure as long-term co-owners alongside our key employees”, said Christoffer Folkebo, CEO of Max Matthiessen.
Max Matthiessen will be acquired through a holding company owned 65% by Altor and 35% by Bure, and a holding company owned by key employees of Max Matthiessen.
The transaction is expected to close within three months subject to customary conditions, including regulatory approvals, as well as Altor and Bure closing the acquisition of Carnegie.
Financial advisers to Altor and Bure are Morgan Stanley, Lenner & Partners and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Legal adviser to Altor and Bure is Linklaters.
The National Debt Office will hold a press conference at 10.00 CET at Carnegie’s offices on Västra Trädgårdsgatan 15. Harald Mix and Patrik Tigerschiöld will be present to answer questions. A webcast of the press conference will be available on the Carnegie website www.carnegie.se
About Bure
Bure Equity AB is a listed investment company whose primary emphasis is on long-term ownership in unlisted companies with a strong and stable earnings capacity. Bure was founded in 1992, listed on the OMX Stockholm Stock Exchange in 1993 and has a current market capitalisation of SEK 1.2 billion. Bure has significant experience in investing in professional services companies. The current portfolio consists of four investments: Mercuri International, EnergoRetea, Scandinavian Retail Center and Celemi. For more information, please visit www.bure.se
About Max Matthiessen
Founded in 1889, Max Matthiessen is headquartered in Stockholm and has offices in 20 cities throughout Sweden. The Company had 340 employees at the end of 2008 and is the leading independent Swedish adviser within pension insurance, life insurance and long-term savings solutions. Max Matthiessen’s customers include approximately 12,000 medium-sized to large companies and approximately 150,000 private individuals. For more information, please visit www.maxm.se
