RSS
Market and Sector Type: 
Telecoms

Optilan acquired in NVM-backed MBO

Article Date:  Apr 04 2008 Nick Britton

NVM Private Equity has backed the management buy-out (MBO) of Coventry-based telecoms network provider Optilan. The firm has invested more than £5 million in the MBO, which is led by Optilan’s CEO and co-founder Richard Buckland.

Buckland and his fellow directors Chris Yarwood and Bal Kier now have a controlling stake in the firm, which was acquired for an undisclosed sum. Additional financing was provided by Allied Irish Bank and GE Commercial Finance (General Electric’s financial services arm).

Optilan designs, installs and maintains telecoms systems for the oil and gas, transport, power and utilities industries. It has 200 employees, the majority of whom are engineering and technical staff, and satellite offices in Moscow and Qatar.

Iain Lownes, partner at corporate finance house BTG McInnes, which structured the deal, comments: ‘All of Optilan’s key sales markets are experiencing high levels of investment that are largely resilient to slowdowns in the world economy.’

In related news, NVM has exited Technology for Business, a Hampshire-based provider of IT systems for law firms. The company was acquired by legal IT consultancy Tikit for £7.4 million in shares and a loan repayment of £1.6 million, giving NVM a return of three times its original investment, or an IRR of 15 per cent over a nine-year period.

With funds under management of £190 million, Newcastle-based NVM makes investments of between £2 million and £10 million in unquoted UK-based companies.

Comments 

There are currently no comments on this article

Sign up and get...

  • Regular GrowthBusiness newsletters
  • Post comments on articles
Sign up

Hiscox Business Insurance 

Life’s full of uncertainties, but you never want to be in any doubt about your business insurance. Hiscox offers broad and inclusive business insurance available online. You can tailor a policy to suit your business needs from a broad range of covers. Find out more.

Secure early payment for your unpaid invoices with Simply Business

Simply Business works with a carefully selected panel of the UK's leading factoring and invoice discounting providers. Find out your cash flow options in minutes, you could have 90% of your invoices paid in 24 hours. To find out more click here

Selecting the right IT strategy in 2010

Owner managers and CEOs of fast-growing companies want IT-applications that accelerate competitive advantage and improve operational efficiency. This free whitepaper helps you plan and choose the right IT strategy for your business in 2010. Download ‘Selecting The Right Software Vendor’.

Research

  • Directors' Pay AIM 2009

    What should an AIM company pay its CEO or FD?
    What should a non-executive director or chairman expect to be paid?
    What benchmarks should AIM remuneration committee members be using when
    setting pay?

VCT Special Report 2009

This reports principle aim is to provide business owners seeking funding with information about the amount of funds that VCTs have to invest.

Cash Shells Special Report 2009

A comprehensive overview of cash shells on AIM and PLUS, companies that have become a significant feature on the market landscape.

More

Events Calendar

The Media Magnate Awards 2009

26th March, Vinopolis, London

More

More News: Mergers & Acquisitions

Bowmark backs Leaders buy-out

Lettings and property agency Leaders has been acquired in a £48 million management buy-out backed by Bowmark Capital.

Green light for Friends Reunited deal

Online information business Brightsolid has been given the official go-ahead for the acquisition of Friends Reunited Group for £25 million.

Hotbed backs Wheatley MBO

Wheatley Associates, a specialist software company, has undergone a management buy-out backed by private investor syndicate Hotbed.

More Telecoms: Mergers & Acquisitions

Spinvox sold for $100 million

Voice-to-text conversion business Spinvox has been sold for $102.5 million (£63 million), less than the total venture capital invested in the company.

Carlyle Group exits SmartTrust

SmartTrust, a developer of software for mobile operators backed by The Carlyle Group, has been acquired by Giesecke & Devrient.

Enterprise Ventures exits H2O Networks

North of England-focused fund manager Enterprise Ventures (EV) has exited broadband company H2O Networks generating an IRR of 142%.

mBalance sold to Tekelec

An Amsterdam-based text messaging infrastructure company has been acquired by one of its clients for up to €42 million (£40 million).

Vodafone extends Australian coverage

A UK mobile phone giant has expanded its operations in Australia after buying part of a local retailer. Vodafone now holds a stake in Crazy John’s, following a distribution agreement that the two companies formed last year.

Advertisement

Related articles

NVM buys stake in Lanner as 3i exits

Mid-market investor NVM has bought a minority stake in software developer Lanner Group as the company's previous backer 3i exits the business.

Mavinwood sells off subsidiaries in MBO

AIM-listed support services group Mavinwood has sold two of its subsdiaries in a management buy-out for a consideration of up to £19.6 million.

NVM exits Pivotal Laboratories for 27% IRR

York-based Pivotal Laboratories has been acquired by a US company, delivering an initial return of 2.2 times money for venture capital backer NVM.

Diagnos in BIMBO

A buy-in management buy-out (BIMBO) team has acquired Diagnos, a developer of diagnostic software for the car servicing industry.

Poll

What should Alistair Darling deliver in the Budget?




Have your vote on current issues

People who read this also read

  • Successful bastards

    Self-centred, tough, ruthless and unpredictable: these are the characteristics of a successful person, according to a book published this week.

  • Octopus backs Hydrobolt MBO

    Hydrobolt, a manufacturer serving the oil and gas industry, and its sister company Studbolt have been bought by their management in a deal worth £16 million. Mid-market investor Octopus backed the transaction with £4.5 million from its private equity and intermediate capital funds.

  • Learn to switch off

    Picture yourself in a situation where your bankers are becoming increasingly difficult or you are losing money and have to make job cuts among friends and colleagues to survive. It may not be that difficult to imagine.

  • Why Silicon Valley rocks

    Silicon Valley is like a supermarket for entrepreneurs – everything is available within a few square miles, from finance to technology teams, lawyers, networks and resources, and of course it’s sunny.

  • Quotient secures production funding

    A developer of diabetes testing technology has secured an investment of £1 million. Quotient Diagnostics, which has 30 separate investors, will now begin production of its point-of-care system consisting of a desktop reader and disposable cartridges.

White Papers

Better Roads

Serves the information needs of governments and construction contractors involved in Federal, State, County, City and Township highway, road and bridge construction, winter maintenance, roadside and vegetation management and other highway-related projects.

Defense Technology International

Is the one publication focusing on the critical role of defense technologies in programs, policies, programs and funding, providing readers with integrated intelligence and global perspective in Land, Sea, and Air.

FierceGovernmentIT

Is a free, three times a week email briefing for government employees and contractors on the latest government technology news.

More