BC Partners Leads Syndicate in FFr 570 Million Bercy Deal

BC Partners in November led an investor syndicate which provided a FFr 570 million (ecu 86 million) capital increase for Bercy Management, France’s Number One concession and contract catering group. BC Partners funds acquired a 20% holding in Bercy Management; Union d’Etudes et d’Investissement, an existing investor in Bercy Management, took its stake to 16%; Paribas Affaires Industrielles, which is backing Bercy for the first time, acquired a 7% stake. Bercy Management’s founder managers, Francois Markus and Robert Zolade saw their shareholding decrease from 80% to 57% as a result of the injection of institutional equity.

In parallel with the capital increase, Credit Lyonnais, Credit Agricole Indosuez, Banque Paribas and CIC led a refinancing of Bercy Management’s debt facilities.

Francis Markus and Robert Zolade formed Bercy to acquire a number of catering concerns from Generale des Eaux’s from Grnerale de Restauration business. The new funding structure was designed to allow Bercy Management to refinance its recent purchase of the balance of the Generale de Restauration businesses and its acquisition, in association with Advent International, of Holding de Restauration Concede (EVCJ, October/November 1997, page 24).

Bercy Management, which operates 3,500 restaurants throughout France, and is also active in the UK, the Netherlands and Spain, has a turnover of FFr 9.5 billion. The group is pursuing a policy of development with a view to a flotation in the next few years.