TPG carves out Forcepoint’s government biz from FP; Clearlake closes sale of Archer to Cinven

Good morning, Hubsters. MK Flynn here on a busy Monday morning.

Dealmakers are making up for last week’s holiday lull by announcing a slew of transactions today.

TPG just unveiled a cybersecurity deal.

Cinven closed its acquisition of risk management software developer Archer, scoring an exit for Clearlake.

And RedBird is buying a luxury car rental business.

We’ve also got a Deep Dive about Ardian’s foray into Mexico’s telecom market.

Let’s start with the news.

Cybersecurity carveout
TPG Capital is buying the Global Governments and Critical Infrastructure (G2CI) business of Austin-based cybersecurity specialist Forcepoint from Francisco Partners, which will retain a minority interest. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter.

“Today’s operating environment – one in which data volumes are compounding, attack surfaces are broadening, and threats are growing in sophistication – demands dynamic security solutions,” said Tim Millikin, partner at TPG. “This is especially true for the public sector, and Forcepoint has designed its platform to address the unique complexities of government objectives and culture.”

Sean Berg, president, Global Governments and Critical Infrastructure at Forcepoint, said: “TPG has a long history of carving-out, building, and scaling world-class cybersecurity companies. We’re confident that this partnership, along with continued support from Francisco Partners, will provide us the resources and expertise to strengthen our position as a partner of choice for government agencies.”

FP will continue to be the controlling shareholder in Forcepoint’s commercial business.
Software-as-a-Service platform

Clearlake Capital Group and Symphony Technology Group have completed the sale of risk management software developer Archer Technologies to London PE firm Cinven.

STG acquired Archer back in 2020 as part of its acquisition of RSA Security from Dell Technologies and partnered with Clearlake in 2021 to establish Archer as an independent business.

“Since we invested in the business, Archer has relaunched as an independent SaaS platform, reconfigured its go-to-market motion and transitioned many customers to a longer-term partnership model, all while accelerating the switch to a cloud-based product,” said Behdad Eghbali, co-founder and managing partner, and Prashant Mehrotra, partner and managing director, of Clearlake, in the deal announcement.

Premium fleet
RedBird Capital Partners has agreed to make a significant investment in Go Rentals, a luxury rental car provider in Newport Beach, California.

“Go Rentals has built a strong, differentiated brand with a premium fleet and is well-positioned for significant growth across key markets in RedBird’s ecosystem,” said Andrew Lauck, partner at RedBird. “RedBird’s investment portfolio in private aviation, professional sports, entertainment and financial services gives a unique perspective on the Go Rentals’ business and its customers and distribution channels.”

Co-founders and owners Kavous and Kaye Gitibin will continue to lead Go Rentals along with the current management team. Lauck, and Alexander Blankfein, managing director, of RedBird, will join Go Rentals’ board of directors.

Main Street Advisors, a strategic investment partner of RedBird, will also participate.

Demand for connectivity
Earlier in July, Paris-based Ardian announced a 50 percent stake in MXT Holdings. Ardian is teaming up with MXT existing shareholder Mexico Infrastructure Partners, which will retain the other 50 percent. The deal is expected to close in the second half of the year.

To learn more, PE Hub’s Obey Martin Manayiti spoke with Ardian senior managing director Michael Obhof.

“Mexico and the US are pretty close, and what we are starting to see is the concept of nearshoring,” Obhof said. For many manufacturers, Mexico’s proximity to the US helps reduce transportation costs and shipping time.

With a population of 130 million, and being the second largest economy in Latin America, the Mexican market offers lots of opportunities.

“Increased economic activity drives demand for connectivity,” Obhof added.
The growing middle class “will require more mobile devices and connectivity.”

That’s all for today. Fingers crossed the deal announcements keep on coming! I’ll be back tomorrow to report on them.

Happy dealmaking until then,

MK