European private equity firm CVC has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Dutch infrastructure investor DIF Capital Partners in a deal worth around €1bn in cash and shares, with a commitment to acquire the remaining shares “over time”.
The deal is part of an initiative by CVC to expand its range of investment strategies ahead of an expected initial public offering and provides the firm with an infrastructure platform it describes as “directly adjacent and highly complementary to its existing private equity, secondary and credit strategies”.
The decision to acquire DIF, which was founded in 2005, and manages €16bn in assets, comes as the CVC’s traditional buyout rivals, including Blackstone and Apollo, have established themselves as diversified asset managers.
CVC recently made headlines by raising €26bn for the largest buyout find ever and the firm has also expanded into the secondaries market through the acquisition of Glendower Capital and groin its credit business, which provides financing for leveraged buyouts, among other things.
The transaction is subject to regulatory and other consents and is expected to close in Q4 2023 or Q1 2024. The Dutch works council of DIF has been informed and positively advised on the transaction. Advisers to CVC in this transaction included JPMorgan. DIF’s advisers included, among others, Morgan Stanley & Co, Loyens & Loeff, PwC and De Brauw.
