Epiris’ portfolio company Portals to acquire Fedrigoni’s security business

POSTED 28 April 2021

Epiris today announces that Portals, the leading global currency and security paper supplier and a portfolio company of Epiris Fund II, has agreed to acquire the security business of Fedrigoni S.p.A. Fund II has agreed to make a further investment in Portals to fund the acquisition, which is the sixth add-on acquisition to be made by a Fund II portfolio company. Financial terms are not being disclosed.

Portals, which is led by Executive Chairman Daniel Dayan and Chief Executive Ross Holliday, has been manufacturing security papers for use in critical applications such as banknotes, passports, vehicle registration documents and birth and marriage certificates for over 300 years. Each year, Portals produces materials for more than 12 billion banknotes, 70 million passports, 60 million certificates and 200 million brand labels, for use in more than 100 countries.

Fedrigoni’s security business, based in Bollate, Italy, produces security threads and foils for banknotes and other security applications, and is the largest volume producer of security threads in the banknote industry. Separately, Portals has entered into an option to acquire certain of Fedrigoni’s banknote and passport paper assets located in Fabriano, Italy. Portals intends to maintain and develop thread manufacturing in Bollate and to add further innovation capabilities in the UK. Completion of the transactions is expected in late 2021 following employee consultation and granting of customary approvals.

Bill Priestley, Chief Investment Partner at Epiris, said:

“Since 2018, our investment in Portals has enabled the company to upgrade and expand its banknote manufacturing capabilities. This acquisition is the next step in our strategy for the business and will not only enable it to offer its global customer base an integrated paper and security thread proposition, but also fuel further innovation in security and durability.”

Alex Fortescue, Managing Partner at Epiris, said:

“This add-on acquisition continues the significant M&A-driven transformation in Epiris portfolio companies, with recent announcements of important acquisitions by James Hay, Bonhams and now Portals.”

Ross Holliday, Chief Executive at Portals, said:

“The acquisition of Fedrigoni’s security thread and foil business will mark a major step forward in Portals’ strategy to bring improved innovation and value to our customers for banknote, passport and security papers.”

The Epiris team on the deal is Bill Priestley, Owen Wilson and Aaron Atwal.  Epiris and Portals are advised by CMS, KPMG, Searchlight Consulting and RPS.

Ends 

For Epiris LLP please contact:

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About Epiris

Epiris is a top-decile* private equity firm which invests in opportunities to transform businesses in partnership with exceptional management teams. It targets control positions in UK-headquartered businesses with an enterprise value of between £75 million and £500 million, deploying between £40 million and £150 million of equity.

Fund I

Between 2011 and 2016 Epiris invested £1 billion in buyouts and loan-to-own debt investments in respect of which it has delivered a gross IRR of 38%*. Synthetic net returns from this portfolio are in the top-decile of European private equity funds of comparable vintages.

Fund II

Epiris Fund II is an institutional private equity fund raised in 2017. Investments made by Fund II include Portals, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of “substrate” for banknotes; TI Media, one of the largest consumer magazine publishers in the UK; The Club Company, the UK’s largest country club operator; Bonhams, the global auction house; Diamorph, a supplier of advanced material solutions for demanding and safety-critical applications; IFG Group, a financial services holding company whose subsidiaries are James Hay, which provides pensions administration and investment platform services, and Saunderson House, an independent wealth manager and financial adviser; and The Big Table, which operates more than 150 restaurants under the Las Iguanas, Bella Italia and Café Rouge brands. In April 2020, the Fund sold TI Media to Future Plc for £140 million, generating a return of 2.1x MOIC, a 44% IRR.

For further information, please visit www.epiris.co.uk.

Issued by Epiris which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

*As at 31 December 2020. Gross IRR does not reflect adjustments for investment management and administration costs. Comparator data supplied by Preqin. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.