Palamon Capital Partners, a European mid-market private equity firm, has sold its majority stake in Stockholm-based Nordax Finans to Vision Capital, a European investment firm.
The transaction, valuing Nordax at EUR105m, is subject to approval by the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority.
Nordax provides unsecured loans to individuals of good credit standing across the Nordic region and operates in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland.
Nordax was established in late 2003 by a management team of five principals led by chief executive Morten Falch with the backing of Palamon.
Erik Ferm (pictured), a partner at Palamon, says: “It has been a fantastic experience to accompany Morten and his team from the first loan to a market-leading position in only six years. Nordax is operating in a growing market and, the company’s proprietary underwriting capabilities and strong management team has resulted in the business producing excellent returns. The transaction will generate a 3.7x investment return for Palamon, demonstrating the success of our thesis-led investment approach in consumer finance.”
Falch adds: “Building Nordax from a standing start into a leading force in Nordic consumer finance was a considerable challenge, which the management team took on with relish. The intimate collaboration between Palamon and the Nordax management team was an essential element in the company’s success. Palamon shared our vision for the business throughout its period of investment and was an excellent partner: supporting, challenging, guiding and assisting us in all major business decisions. We now look forward with equal enthusiasm to our partnership with Vision Capital in the next stage in Nordax’s development.”
This is the first financial services investment in Vision Capital Partners VII , Vision Capital’s most recent fund. Financing was provided by Proventus Capital Partners, a Stockholm-based investment company focusing on corporate loans and bonds.
The management of Nordax will retain a significant interest in the company.
Andrew Hawkins, a managing partner at Vision Capital, says: “We are delighted to be acquiring Nordax, which has established itself as one of the premier providers of consumer finance in the Nordic region and built a substantial and profitable loan book over the last six years. We see significant opportunities to expand the business and are excited to be working with Morten and his exceptional team to support the company in realising its future growth potential.”
