Cinven to Buy Patent Business

Private equity firm Cinven is to buy patent business CPA from Intermediate Capital Group (ICG) for 950 million pounds ($1.46 billion), writes Reuters. Cinven had been up against rival private equity house BC Partners in the final stage of the auction process, sources had previously said.

Reuters – Private equity firm Cinven has agreed a deal to buy patent business CPA from Intermediate Capital Group (ICG) for 950 million pounds ($1.46 billion), a source familiar with the situation said.

Cinven had been up against rival private equity house BC Partners in the final stage of the auction process, sources had previously said.

Just two years ago, ICG invested in Jersey-based CPA, which looks after the intellectual property of anything from software to recipes for cereals, with customers operating in chemical engineering, pharmaceuticals, technology and telecoms.

Its deal for a significant minority stake valued the business at 440 million pounds at the time.

Cinven’s deal will see it take a majority stake in the business, buying a portion of the company from CPA’s other private shareholders, the person said.

ICG provides companies with mezzanine debt financing but also invests in minority equity stakes, high-yield bonds and leveraged loans, managing some 12 billion euros ($15.28 billion) of assets.

CPA was founded in 1969 in Jersey and now employs more than 1,500 staff. It has customers in more than 100 countries.

Investment firm ICG put the business up for sale at the end of last year, hoping to get around 700 million pounds, Reuters reported earlier this month.

Cinven and CPA declined to comment. ICG was not immediately available for comment.