Advent International is preparing to launch the sale of Italian industrial confectionery group Irca SpA, in a transaction that could value the business at around €3bn, as lenders begin lining up financing for a potential buyout, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The report cites unnamed people familiar with the matter as revealing that UBS and Rothschild are advising on the process, which is expected to be launched later this quarter.
The potential exit would add to a growing European M&A pipeline as private equity firms look to capitalise on improving market sentiment and renewed activity in leveraged finance markets.
Lenders are already competing to provide acquisition financing, with debt packages expected to range between €1.2bn and €1.6bn – equivalent to approximately six to eight times Irca’s estimated €200m EBITDA.
Private credit providers are understood to be more willing to finance at the upper end of the leverage range, while banks are exploring high-yield bond structures, most likely through floating-rate notes. Private credit lenders are expected to offer unitranche facilities combining senior and junior debt.
The financing process mirrors competition currently seen on other large European private equity transactions, including Astorg’s anticipated sale of fund services provider IQ-EQ, where around €2bn of debt is being prepared for bidders.
Advent acquired Irca from Carlyle in 2022 in a deal backed by roughly €600m of debt. Since then, the business has expanded through acquisitions, including the €500m purchase of Kerry Group’s Sweet Ingredients portfolio in 2023. Irca refinanced its capital structure in 2024, issuing €1.1bn of floating-rate notes.
Founded more than a century ago in Lombardy, Irca employs over 2,000 people and operates 21 production facilities across Europe, the US and Vietnam, supplying customers in more than 100 countries.
