General Atlantic Backs FNZ Alongside H.I.G.

Global growth equity firm General Atlantic is to acquire a minority stake in FNZ, a provider of technology, transaction and custody services to the wealth management industry. General Atlantic will invest alongside H.I.G. Europe and the management team. H.I.G. originally backed an MBO of FNZ in early 2009.

PRESS RELEASE

FNZ, a fast growing provider of technology, transaction and custody services to the wealth management industry, is pleased to announce that it has entered into an agreement with General Atlantic LLC (“General Atlantic”), the global growth equity firm, whereby General Atlantic will acquire a minority equity stake in FNZ, investing alongside H.I.G. Europe (“H.I.G.”) and the management team. Completion of the transaction remains subject to EU competition commission approval.

H.I.G. originally backed an MBO of FNZ in early 2009. FNZ has subsequently seen significant expansion in its customer base in the UK, Australia and New Zealand, developing long term partnerships with blue-chip customers including Standard Life, AXA, JP Morgan, HSBC, AMP, National Australia Bank, Friends Life, UBS, Zurich and Close Brothers Asset Management.

FNZ’s technology, transaction and custody services enable these institutions to provide best-in-class wealth management solutions to financial advisers, end-investors and the workplace that are efficient, flexible, transparent and scalable, supporting market, demographic and regulatory trends worldwide.

Since early 2009, FNZ’s assets under administration on behalf of its institutional customers have grown from £4 billion to over £21 billion. The company has 650 asset servicing and technology staff in offices in the UK, Australia, New Zealand and the Czech Republic.

Adrian Durham, CEO of FNZ said, “General Atlantic will be an excellent value-added partner for FNZ given its strong track record in growth equity investing, excellent global reputation and expertise in the financial services sector. We are delighted to have them on board as we continue to deliver the next phase of growth and international expansion into Asia and other key markets, based on a services platform that provides end-to-end connectivity across the global wealth management value chain.”

John Bernstein, Managing Director at General Atlantic said, “We have long followed wrap platforms and believe that FNZ combines a market leading product and services offering with a highly talented management team. We are impressed with the extraordinary achievements of Adrian and his team over the past few years and are pleased to have the opportunity to contribute our strategic support and long-term partnership approach to further FNZ’s development and global expansion.”

Matthias Allgaier, Managing Director at H.I.G. said, “FNZ has outstanding technology and very strong management. While the transaction provides an attractive partial equity realisation for H.I.G. Europe, the decision to maintain a significant stake in the business reflects H.I.G.’s strong on-going commitment to FNZ.”

FNZ and H.I.G. were advised by Lazard as financial advisor and Kirkland & Ellis International LLP as legal advisor on the transaction. General Atlantic was advised by Weil, Gotshal & Manges and Deloitte.

About FNZ

FNZ provides technology, transaction and custody services to life insurers, banks, and asset managers enabling them to develop and distribute financial products and services to their customers. FNZ has a strong blue-chip customer base including Standard Life, AXA, JP Morgan, HSBC, AMP, National Australia Bank, Bank of New Zealand, Friends Life, UBS, Zurich Financial and Close Brothers Asset Management. The Company employs over 650 people with offices in Edinburgh, London, Bristol, Brno (Czech Republic), Wellington and Sydney.

About General Atlantic

General Atlantic is a leading global growth equity firm providing capital and strategic support for growth companies. Established in 1980, GA manages approximately $17 billion in capital and has more than 75 investment professionals based in Greenwich, New York, Palo Alto, London, Düsseldorf, Hong Kong, Beijing, Singapore, Mumbai and São Paulo. General Atlantic has been an active investor in financial services, investing nearly $3 billion in more than two dozen financial services companies globally. Current financial services sector investments include Markit, CITCO, Klarna, First Republic Bank, Getco LLC, NSE, BM&F Bovespa, Oak Hill Advisors, and IndusInd Bank; prior investments in the sector include NYSE Euronext, NYMEX, RiskMetrics and E*Trade.

About H.I.G. Capital

H.I.G. Capital is a leading global private equity investment firm with more than $8.5 billion of equity capital under management. Based in Miami, and with offices in Atlanta, Boston, New York, and San Francisco in the U.S., as well as affiliate offices in London, Hamburg and Paris in Europe, H.I.G. specialises in providing capital to small and medium-sized companies with attractive growth potential. H.I.G. invests in management-led buyouts and recapitalizations of profitable and well managed manufacturing and service businesses. Since its founding in 1993, H.I.G. invested in and managed more than 200 companies worldwide. The firm’s current portfolio includes more than 50 companies with combined revenues in excess of $8 billion.