Exit of the Year – Mid Cap (Equity commitment on entry – $50-149 million)

B Medical Systems (Navis Capital Partners)

Navis Capital Partners sold B Medical Systems, a biotech cold chain provider with significant Asian operations, for enterprise value of EUR 460m (USD 469m) in August 2022, generating a 4.8x return. The buyer was US-based Azenta. B Med claims to be the largest vaccine cold chain provider globally with operations in 150 countries and a presence in developing economies where grid support is unreliable. Navis acquired the company in 2015 and intensified the focus on medical products, invested in automation and factory expansion, oversaw 60 new product launches, strengthened the management and medical R&D teams, and widened funding sources

LifeHealthcare (Pacific Equity Partners)

Pacific Equity Partners (PEP) sold LifeHealthcare, an Australia-based medical devices distributor, to Ebos Group for AUD 1.28bn (USD 915m) in May 2022, generating a more than 4x return. LifeHealthcare distributes third-party and in-house manufactured implants and consumables across Australia, New Zealand, and Southeast Asia. Crescent Capital Partners formed the business through the amalgamation of several assets and took it public in 2013. PEP completed an AUD 216m take-private in 2018. It helped the company grow organically and through M&A, expand into adjacent therapeutic channels, improve distribution agreements, introduce a new enterprise resource planning platform, and upgrade management and operations teams.

Micromine (Potentia Capital)

Potentia Capital exited its majority stake in Australian mining software provider Micromine to UK-based industrial software player AspenTech in a deal worth AUD 900m (USD 623m) in September 2022. The private equity firm generated a 9.4x return on an investment made in late 2018 via its debut fund. Micromine provides geological exploration, data management, resources estimation, 3D mine design, and planning and production control solutions to resources industry customers globally. Developments during the Potentia holding period include two bolt-on acquisitions, several product rollouts, the securing of contracts with sizeable mining groups, and the establishment of a Mexico office.

Probe CX (Five V Capital, Quadrant Private Equity)

Five V Capital and Quadrant Private Equity sold Probe CX, a customer experience and business process outsourcing solutions provider with a presence in Australia, New Zealand, and the Philippines, to KKR in January 2022. The deal was worth approximately AUD 1.1bn (USD 792m) and generated returns of 4x and 2.83x for Five V and Quadrant, respectively. Five V invested in Probe in 2018. A year later, Quadrant acquired MicroSourcing and merged it with Probe, taking a majority stake in the combined business alongside Five V and the company’s founder and management. Probe CX tripled in size during the holding period.

Sunsho Pharmaceuticals (The Carlyle Group)

The Carlyle Group completed the sale of Sunsho Pharmaceuticals to Towa Pharmaceutical for JPY 47.7bn (USD 419.5m) in February 2022. It acquired the business in 2014, providing a succession planning solution to the founder and CEO, who subsequently retired. Sunsho is one of the largest contract manufacturers in Japan for soft capsules, seamless capsules, and other dosage forms used in health and nutrition products and in pharmaceuticals. Carlyle helped strengthen the company’s management structure and governance, initiated the launch of a new factory and R&D facility, diversified the product portfolio to attract new customers, and significantly increased global revenues.