Manama, Bahrain: Investcorp, a leading global alternative investment firm, announced that through Investcorp Technology Partners (“ITP”), it has agreed to sell its majority stake in Shine (the “Company”), a leading European unicorn and digital platform for small and medium-sized businesses (“SMBs”) to Cegid, a cloud management and AI solutions business majority owned by Silver Lake. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Copenhagen, Shine (formerly Ageras) is a leading provider of integrated digital solutions spanning company creation, invoicing, daily banking, and accounting for SMB. Today, the Company supports more than 400,000 connected SMB customers across Europe, with strong positions in France, the DACH region, the Netherlands and Denmark.
Investcorp first invested into Shine in 2017, having identified it as a high-quality business with an exceptional management team operating in a fragmented market with strong structural tailwinds. During its ownership period, Investcorp worked in partnership with the Company’s co-founders and leadership team to accelerate international expansion, drive product innovation, strengthen go-to-market capabilities, and invested in key technology and AI priorities. Over this period, Shine grew its recurring revenues more than tenfold and completed nine acquisitions across its core markets.
Gilbert Kamieniecky, Head of Investcorp Technology Partners and Chairman of Shine, said: “Our investment in Ageras, now Shine, is one that we are immensely proud of, as we saw the company grow from a start-up with only a few millions in revenue into a European leader and unicorn. I am also grateful for the strong partnership and friendship with the two founders, Rico and Martin.”
Yusef al Yusef, Global Head of Distribution at Investcorp, commented: “Eight years ago we invested in Shine and today we exit the business after growing recurring revenues more than tenfold. We look forward to witnessing Shine in its next phase of growth as a leading SMB-focused platform.”
Rico Andersen, Co-Founder of Shine, added: “Investcorp has been an incredible partner for us throughout this journey, supporting our growth from a small Danish business to the leading SMB-focused platform that Shine is today. We now look forward to the next chapter with Cegid as we work to build out the most complete software and AI platform for small businesses.”
Martin Hegelund, Co-Founder of Shine, added: “The entire Shine team would like to thank the ITP team for their trust and partnership over the last eight years. Their expertise and support have been instrumental in helping us grow into an innovation-driven business with leading technology and capabilities.”
Investcorp has a long history of investing and supporting technology-enabled businesses, with notable investments including Avira, NetRom Software, Zacco and HWG Sababa.
The transaction remains subject to customary financial and regulatory approvals.
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