Bridgepoint Group will acquire North American infrastructure investor Energy Capital Partners in an £835 million ($1.1 billion) deal, in a move that the alternatives manager said will further diversify its business.
A spokesman for Bridgepoint confirmed the deal.
Bridgepoint, a private equity and private debt specialist with more than $40 billion in assets under management across Europe, North America and China, will gain a new infrastructure strategy and a seasoned management team to help drive the firm further, a person familiar with the deal said. The addition of ECP, which has raised more than $30 billion in capital since its inception in 2005, brings a "significant third pillar to the Bridgepoint business and (accelerates its) stated strategy of scaling through both product and geographic diversification," a news release said.
ECP will continue to operate under its existing brand and be led by the current management and investment team. Doug Kimmelman, senior partner and founder of ECP, will continue to lead the infrastructure platform. Senior leadership at ECP will join Bridgepoint's executive team.
"The transaction accelerates our scale, leadership and strategic development, enhances the quality of the group's earnings and margin profile, and provides greater diversification and earnings growth potential for shareholders," said William Jackson, Bridgepoint's chairman, in the news release. "We have a high bar for strategic M&A, and ECP is one of the few platforms we have identified which clearly surpasses it, both from a strategic and financial perspective."
ECP's Mr. Kimmelman said in the same release: "We are very fortunate to have access now to a public equity currency to support our growth, while broadening the ownership of ECP across our firm, allowing us to continue attracting and retaining the very best team, especially in a period of heightened interest in the energy transition."
The deal is expected to be completed within four to six months and will be funded through a combination of the issuance of new Bridgepoint shares and the firm's existing balance sheet resources.
A share ownership program will be instituted across ECP's employee base, and ECP partners will collectively hold 19% of Bridgepoint's shares pre-earnout and up to 25% assuming full earnout, the release said.
