Bright Horizons Family Solutions, a provider of employer-sponsored child care, early education, and work/life solutions, has agreed to be acquired by private equity firm Bain Capital Partn
Bright Horizons Family Solutions, a provider of employer-sponsored child care, early education, and work/life solutions, has agreed to be acquired by private equity firm Bain Capital Partners in a deal valued at USD1.3bn.
Under the agreement, Bright Horizon stockholders will receive USD48.25 in cash for each share of common stock they hold, representing a 47 per cent premium over the closing share price on January 11. The partners say committed financing has been provided for the transaction.
‘Bain Capital enthusiastically supports our mission to provide high-quality care, education, and work/life solutions to the children, families, and clients we serve,’ says Bright Horizons chief executive David Lissy. ‘We believe the transaction, which has the support of our executive team and our founders, will allow us to pursue the opportunities we have to grow and enhance the quality of the education and services we provide.’
Bain Capital managing director Andrew Balson says: ‘We will fully support Bright Horizons in continuing to deliver on its well-established reputation. We look forward to working with the company’s proven and experienced management team to continue to build on their important mission and track record for growth.’
The transaction, which is expected to close in the second quarter of this year, will be financed through a combination of equity contributed by funds managed by Bain Capital and debt financing committed by Goldman Sachs Credit Partners and GS Mezzanine Partners V. Under the terms of the agreement, the board of Bright Horizons will try to solicit superior proposals over the next 60 days.
Goldman Sachs and Evercore Group are financial advisors to the Bright Horizons board’s special committee, while Bass, Berry & Sims is legal advisor to Bright Horizons and Shearman & Sterling is legal counsel to the special committee. Ropes & Gray is legal counsel to Bain Capital.
Bright Horizons manages more than 600 early care and family centres in the US, UK, Ireland and Canada and serves more than 700 corporate clients, including some 95 Fortune 500 companies.
Established in 1984, Bain Capital manages various investment pools including private equity, venture capital, public equity and leveraged debt assets with more than USD65bn in assets under management, and over the years has invested in more than 300 companies worldwide. The firm has almost 300 staff at its headquarters in Boston and offices in New York, London, Munich, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo.
