Trade sale of Silicon Carbide device manufacturer and R&D company Ascatron to leading engineered materials company II-VI Incorporated

listérus & partners Capital Advisors have advised the shareholders of Ascatron AB on the sale of 100% of the shares in the company to II-VI Incorporated.

US based II-VI Incorporated is a global leader in engineered materials and optoelectronic components and a vertically integrated manufacturing company that develops innovative products for diversified applications in the industrial, optical communications, aerospace & defense, life sciences, semiconductor capital equipment, and consumer markets. Headquartered in Saxonburg, Pennsylvania, the Company has research and development, manufacturing, sales, service, and distribution facilities worldwide.

Ascatron is a Swedish scale-up company developing next generation Silicon Carbide (SiC) power semiconductor devices and producing state-of-the art SiC epitaxy material. 

Sellers include RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, KIC InnoEnergy and Italian VC firms Indaco Venture Partners and Como Venture as well as the founders and some angel investors. The founders will continue to work for the company.

Trade sale of food products distributor Werners Gourmetservice to KåKå, an Orkla subsidiary

listérus & partners Capital Advisors have advised the owners of Werners Gourmetservice in conjunction with their sale of a majority stake in the company to KåKå, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Scandinavian food group Orkla.

Werners is a leading player in Sweden for premium products for confectioners, restaurants and professional chefs. They have also established a presence in Denmark, Finland and Norway. 

The company offers gourmet products such as truffles, caviar, chocolate, espresso coffee, desserts, spices and oils, and distributes well-known brands such as Valrhona and illy. The company also sells products under its own brand, Werners.

KåKå is a supplier of bakery ingredients and accessories to Swedish bakeries, confectioners and bakery industries.

LPCA Fund I has divested its shares in the Dutch retail chain Kijkshop

listérus & partners Capital Advisors acquired the Dutch retail chain Kijkshop B.V. during the first quarter of 2015. During 2016, the asset was internally transferred to LPCA Fund I.

Kijkshop is operating in a rapidly changing market and is undergoing a turnaround and digital transformation process. The work with the change has required significant efforts from the owner’s side – both on an operational level and financially – and will still require a dedicated engagement during the foreseeable future.

In order to enable for new investments in the fund and release management capacity for the development of the future portfolio, 100% of the shares held in Kijkshop and its sister companies Kijk IP BV, Kijk UP BV and TONE BV were divested to the Swedish investment company SparkistanStClemens AB during September 2017. 

The Board of the fund made the assessment that SparkistanStClemens has all the required resources at its disposal to successfully manage and further develop the investment in Kijkshop.

In conjunction with the divestiture, Björn Serving resigned from his engagement for listérus & partners Capital Advisors and as an investment manager at LPCA Fund I. He is now engaged by SparkistanStClemens in their subsidiaries.  

For any enquiries, please contact Christian Listérus, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Tel: +46-8-5090 6660.

LPCA Fund I, as subsidiary of listérus & partners Capital Advisors, was established in May 2016 and has now accomplished a first financial closing of 155 million SEK. The total fund size target is 500 million SEK.

The private equity fund is managed under the regulations for alternative investment funds and has been duly registered by the Swedish finance inspection authority (Finansinspektionen).

The fund has since its inception acquired 100% of the shares in LPCA Kijk Holding AB, including the Dutch retail chain Kijkshop B.V., and Kijk Up B.V. from listérus & partners Capital Advisors AB.

The Board of Directors of LPCA Fund I AB has been appointed as follows: Hans Andréasson (Chairman of the Board), Claes Lindqvist, Patrick Palmgren and Christian Listérus (deputy board member).

Christian Listérus and Björn Serving have been assigned as Fund Managers.

listérus & partners Capital Advisors (LPCA) has acquired the Dutch retail chain Kijkshop BV from Axcent Netherlands BV, a subsidiary of Swedish Axcent of Scandinavia AB. The shares are held by LPCA Kijk Holding AB, a 100% subsidiary of LPCA.

Kijkshop is a leading discount retail chain operating over 100 physical stores in the Netherlands and the webshop www.kijkshop.nl as well as B2B solutions for loyalty and reward programmes. The company has dominant market positions in several product categories, such as consumer electronics, household appliances, personal care items, jewelry & watches and outdoor equipment

The company will be further developed with a strong consumer-centric focus and an omni-channel growth strategy under LPCA.

listérus & partners Capital Advisors have advised the shareholders of VICI Industri AB on their trade sale of 100% of the shares in the company to Gnutti Carlo Sweden AB.

Gnutti Carlo is the leading manufacturer and supplier of valve train and fuel injection components for construction, agricultural, marine, genset and transportation engines. It's a private company with global footprint and group headquarters in Maclodio (BS), Italy.

Sellers are Fröjdia AB and Stiftelsen Industrifonden.

Management Consultants Bearingpoint and Centigo and the law firm Mannheimer Swartling have assisted listérus & partners in the project.

The publishers of Acquisition International Magazine have announced the winners of their 2013 Finance Awards and listérus & partners Capital Advisors have been honored the award "Entrepreneur leverage provider of the Year 2013 - Sweden".

According to AI Magazine, "The awards recognise the outstanding achievements of individuals and companies within the finance sector, encompassing everything from insurance brokers and specialist IT providers to advisers on subjects ranging from equities to renewable energy. AI’s Finance Awards identify and honour success, innovation and ethics across international business communities.... The awards are given solely on merit and are awarded to commend those most deserving for outstanding work over the last 12 months. Our awards recognise leaders in their respective fields and, crucially, are nominated by their clients and their peers."

Voting forms were distributed to the 53,000+ subscribers of Acquisition International Magazine along with 55,000 finance professionals.The winners have been determined by factors such as number of votes received and substan­tial in-house research

Centigo is now strategic partner with listérus & partners Capital Advisors. Centigo’s unique competences in driving critical change projects will be valuable in the pre-transaction process and will fit well with the competences provided by the other strategic partners to LPCA; currently Bearingpoint, Headwaters MB and Mannheimer Swartling.

listérus & partners Capital Advisors have advised Jensen Devices AB on its sale of substantially all the assets to Bourns, Inc., a leading manufacturer and supplier of automotive sensors, circuit protection solutions, magnetic products, microelectronic modules, precision potentiometers, panel controls and encoders and resistive products. Bourns, Inc. is a private company with global footprint and has its headquarters in Riverside, CA, USA.

Shareholders of Jensen Devices include Swedish VC firms Industrifonden, Metallica, Midroc New Technology and Volvo Technology Transfer.

Iistérus & partners Capital Advisors hosted the SIME Investor Summit during November 15th-16th in Stockholm. With 200 hand-picked investors and entrepreneurs contributing and connecting, it was a great and successful event.

Our friends at Bearingpoint, Headwaters MB, Mannheimer Swartling, PwC and SIME helped enabling this. A great Thanks to you! 

Photos to be found here

By launching our new web presence, we are not only communicating our messages more effectively. Our intention is also to demonstrate innovation ability and our strive to act and serve our clients differently.

This web site provides new concepts in design and navigation. For example, once the page is loaded, you don't need to load another page to access more information. We provide you with "the whole picture" straight away. Click the menu options or scroll the page (you can even swipe with your fingers if you have an Ipad) and you will discover.

Not only do we represent a new business approach to the M&A market, we want to be different in everything we do. Different to the better. Innovative and creative with focus on the big picture. 

• listérus & partners Capital Advisors have signed up three new Strategic Partners to support the full range of end to end M&A Growth Services. We are excited to announce Bearingpoint Sweden AB, Headwaters MB and MannheimerSwartling, all with extensive and proven track records which made them to one of the best in their respective competence areas.

  ”We are confident that this will be a very successful cooperation based on shared values and a hunger to make creative business based on a mutual win-win methodology.” – Björn Serving, CEO

  "An increasingly complex global market with growing competition will require new

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• and innovative partnerships to provide excellence within M & A and to act as partners to owners to achieve the maximum values in each step of the transaction" - Patrick Palmgren, Partner and CEO, BearingPoint Sweden

   

• There are many innovative small businesses in Sweden that are interesting acquisition targets for multinational companies. An example is the sale of Swedish TranSiC to Fairchild Semiconductor during the spring of 2011.

  TranSiC develops transistors in Silicon Carbide, used in electric vehicles and hybrid cars and other applications. listérus & partners began its involvement in the company with strategic business advice, and was subsequently active as financial advisor and market-maker for the company.  

  Besides the founders, major stakeholders were the venture capital firms Industrifonden, Midroc New Technology and Volvo Technology Transfer.

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• "We are very pleased with the cooperation with listérus & partners, and the result of the deal." 
  -Göran Linder, CEO of Midroc New Technology.

  "PwC participated as tax advisors to the founders. The success of this particular transaction was very much a result of the open collaboration and the climate that existed between the different advisors. The interaction definitely created added value "
  – Håkan Behmer, Partner, Tax, PwC

  "It is gratifying to note how our combination of industry expertise, transaction know-how and a scalable partner model has enabled brilliant results

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• both for TranSiC - now reaching a global market - and its founders and investors."
  -Christian Listérus, Managing Director of listérus & partners.

• listérus & partners Capital Advisors make the assessment that many companies are valued and sold based on principles that do not always reflect their true value potential.

  The firm has therefore in strategic partnerships developed a value creation platform for venture capital investors and entrepreneurs targeting an exit. 

  Many companies consider the process in connection with a sale or funding isolated from the day-to-day operations. listérus & partners are convinced that the full potential can be realized only if you take a holistic approach, which includes both operations development and the transaction process. It is a

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• complex undertaking in breadth and depth in terms of both financial and operational expertise over time.

  "We help our clients to identify, develop, and capitalize on their companies’ true values."
  -Björn Serving, Partner and co-founder, listérus & partners Capital Advisors

  To ensure the delivery, listérus & partners work in a selective partner constellation with Bearingpoint, Mannheimer Swartling, PwC and the North American investment bank Headwaters MB. Cooperation with customers is based on that the parties agree that shared risk and reward creates the conditions for maximum results. listérus & partners’ process is managed based on an aligned agenda,

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• where all parties share the same objectives. The clients receive a seamless service from one supplier with tailored teams for each specific challenge.

  "We are excited about this cooperation, which strengthens our foothold in Northern Europe, augmenting our cross border activity and our focus on delivering high value services to our clients. "
  – Gary Moon, MD and Co-Head of TMT, Headwaters MB 

  "An increasingly complex global market with growing competition will require new and innovative partnerships to provide the best excellence in M & A and to act as partners to owners to achieve the maximum values in each step

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• of the transaction"
  – Patrick Palmgren, Partner and Leader, BearingPoint Sweden

  Full press release in Swedish here.

• During listérus & partners Capital Advisors statutory board meeting, held in Stockholm June 13 2011, the Board of Directors elected Claes Lindqvist as the new Chairman.

  "I am delighted to lead this strong lineup of business executives as the new Chairman of listérus & partners Capital Advisors AB. I am confident that the new Board members, with their vast experience in a wide variety of areas such as operations, business management, finance and law, will help us take the company to a very exciting level and becoming a leading provider of  M&A and Growth Services." – Claes Lindqvist, Chairman

   Currently, Claes Lindqvist works as President of

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• Henry Dunker Förvaltnings AB. Beyond that, he is also commissioned as Executive Director of Henry and Gerda Dunkers Foundation and Foundation No. 2 as well as Board member of Dunker Foundations, Trelleborg AB, Svenska Handelsbanken Southern Region, Novotek AB (publ) among others. Over the years, Claes has held many executive positions in companies such as ASEA and Åkerlund & Rausing. He also served as CEO of Höganäs AB and Öresundskraft AB.

   

   

• listérus & partners Capital Advisors have elected a completely new Board of Directors, during the extraordinary general meeting, held in Stockholm June 10 2011. 

  The new Directors are Claes Lindqvist, President of Henry Dunkers Förvaltnings AB; Patrick Palmgren, CEO Bearingpoint Sweden AB; Hans Andreasson, Partner Mannheimer Swartling and Håkan Behmer, Partner Tax PwC.

   “Each and everyone is a widely respected and deeply experienced business leader and together they represent the key components for the

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• comprehensive long-term plan for the company. I’m also very proud to be part of this team and I feel very confident that the team will provide our company with new insight experience and perspectives relating to a rapid growth of the company.” – Björn Serving, CEO