The Norwegian financial institution Folkefinans AS was acquired by the Swedish financial institution Nordiska Kreditmarknadsaktiebolaget (publ), who wanted to expand its business to Norway.
Folkefinans provides short term loans and consumer loans to private individuals in Norway and Sweden. The company is regulated by the Norwegian Financial Supevisory Authority (Finanstilsynet), whose regulatory approval was required for the completion of the transaction. The ownership base in Folkefinans was diversified, the largest owner being an estate of a former Brittish payday loan company, and the remaining 90% consisting mainly of Norwegian, Icelandic, Swedish and Finnish private investors.
Oehlandt & Co acted as deal advisor to the Company and the shareholders. December 2021
The food-tech company Mekitec from Finland acquired the Mexican technology company Kanan Smart Solution by a share swap transaction from Grupo Bimbo, the global leader in Bakery. Grupo Bimbo became the largest shareholder of Mekitec with an almost 25% ownership. The transaction included also a commercial co-operation agreement between Mekitec and Grupo Bimbo.
More information on https://www.mekitec.com/mekitec-grupo-bimbo-announcement/
Oehlandt & Co acted as deal advisor to Mekitec and its main shareholders. July 2021.
MCF Group Estonia OÜ, which is building the largest data center in the Baltics, has been acquired by the Three Seas Initiative Investment Fund (3SIIF), which is a fund for infrastructure investment planning in Central and Eastern Europe, focusing on the energy, transport and digital infrastructure sectors.
MCF’s data center is to be opened near Tallinn in 2021 and will have a maximum capacity of up to 20 MW. 3SIIF acquired MCF through Greenergy Data Centers OÜ.
Estonia has one of the highest cloud penetration rates for enterprises in Europe and the government is also a strong supporter of digitalisation with many innovative initiatives. The goal of 3SIIF is to establish energy-efficient data centers in Central and Eastern European countries, and the acquisition of MCF is a first very strategic step. 3SIIF and Amber Infrastructure, the investment adviser to 3SIIF, believe that in light of growing data volumes, there is a demand for modern data centers in the entire Central and Eastern European region that are energy efficient and meet the highest security requirements.
The Sellers of MCF were Finnish and Estonian private investors and family offices, who funded the project from the establishment of the company in 2016. Pictures from the time of the roofing party of the data center, held in September 2020, can be found below.
MCF’s home page can be found here: https://www.mcfestonia.com/home/
For 3SIIF’s press release, please visit https://3siif.eu/news/the-three-seas-fund-makes-its-first-digital-investment
Amber Infrastructure’s press release https://amberinfrastructure.com/news/press-releases/2020/three-seas-initiative-investment-fund-makes-its-first-digital-investment/
An article by the Estonian newspaper Postimees: https://majandus24.postimees.ee/7123949/euroopa-fond-ostab-ara-eesti-suurima-andmekeskuse
A Linkedin-post on the M&A transaction by Tero Viherto, the co-Founder and Chairman of MCF: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/tero-viherto-89b5338_estonian-company-acquires-largest-data-center-activity-6740932955352375297-CMLh
Oehlandt & Co acted as the exclusive financial adviser to the Sellers.
December 2020.
The Finnish
technology company FocalSpec has been acquired by TKH Group NV, a Dutch listed
technology company.
FocalSpec is a global pioneer in designing and manufacturing high-precision, high-speed optical sensors. Their unique and patented Line Confocal Imaging (LCI) technology is used in diverse, demanding quality assurance applications e.g. in the electronics industry. During 2019, FocalSpec made a breakthrough in mobile device manufacturing.
TKH Group is a Dutch listed technology company focused on high-end innovative technologies in high growth markets. Employing more than 6,500 people, TKH achieved a turnover of € 1.6 billion in 2018. With this acquisition, TKH Group expands its vision technology with industry-leading confocal technology that solves applications in markets such as consumer electronics, battery, pharma, semiconductor and medical.
FocalSpec will join the LMI Technologies group and operate under the LMI brand – a global leader in 3D inline scanning and inspection. FocalSpec’s R&D will gain additional resources and platforms from the LMI Group’s existing metrology operations. FocalSpec’s sales organization will be strengthened as the products will get access to the LMI Group’s sales network globally.
FocalSpec was founded in 2009 as a spin-off from VTT, the National Technical Research Institute of Finland and is headquartered in Oulu, Finland. Apart from VTT Ventures, the company owners included Nordic Option, Veritas Pension Insurance, Sauli Törmälä as well as several other private investors.
Read more in the following releases: TKH Group’s release, FocalSpec’s release, LMI Technologies’ release and Nordic Option’s release (in Finnish).
Oehlandt & Co acted as financial advisor to FocalSpec and its owners in the transaction.
October 2019.
Ecosir Group Ltd, a company providing automatic waste and laundry transfer systems to the health care and residential sectors, was sold to an international group of investors from Asia and Europe.
Ecosir Group’s main owners prior to the transaction was Panostaja plc and the CEO of the company, who will remain CEO and owner of the company also after the trade sale. Ecosir Group had already during the previous ownership structure closed significant projects abroad, e.g. in China, Malaysia and Kuwait. With the new owners, the international growth of the company is expected to accelerate further.
Panostaja’s release about the sale can be read here (in Finnish).
Oehlandt & Co acted as the financial adviser to the sellers in the transaction. November 2018.
Lappset Group Ltd, a leading European manufacturer of playground and fitness park equipment as well as themed activity parks, acquired the majority of the shares of Fantasia Works Ltd, a Kuopio-based company designing themed play equipment, activity park games and props.
With the acquisition Lappset, a family company from Rovaniemi in Lapland, strengthened its expertise and resources in themed activity parks, particularly in design and special production. The companies had been co-operating for several years and therefore the acquisition was a natural step for Lappset in ensuring the additional resources required for its international growth strategy.
Lappset’s release regarding the acquisition can be read here.
Oehlandt & Co acted as the financial adviser to Lappset Group. September 2018.
Oehlandt & Co advised a leading Finnish group active in the creative sector in a restructuring, in which the minority holdings in the group’s subsidiaries were converted to ownership in the parent company.
At the same time as the re-structuring, the group’s many brands were harmonized into one and its different knowledge areas were formed into new business units. The transaction was carried out through a share exchange based on valuations of the subsidiaries and the group.
The re-structuring and brand reform created a structure that integrates the interests of the minority owners and the group for the benefit of the group’s growth and future.
The transaction was carried out during 2018.
JOT Automation, a company based in Oulu, Finland providing test automation and robotics to the electronics industry, was sold to Chinese Suzhou Victory Precision Manufacture Co., Ltd. The acquiring company is listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.
Revenue for JOT Automation amounted to EUR 76 million and operating profit (EBIT) to over EUR 8 million in 2017.
JOT Automation’s press release on the sale can be read here, and the press release of the main owner of JOT Automation, Head Group, can be found here.
Oehlandt & Co was financial advisor to the target, JOT Automation, and its owners in the cross-border M&A transaction.
The transaction was completed in June 2018.
Spin-off of JOT Automation’s business unit to Verso Ventures
JOT Automation’s business unit that combines robotics, machine vision and sensor and software technology in mechanical engineering and automates critical phases of manufacturing, was incorporated. Verso Ventures, a Finnish private equity company, became the main owner of the newly established Flexmill Ltd and JOT Automation continues as a minority owner.
Oehlandt & Co acted as financial adviser to JOT Automation.
July 2017
Oehlandt & Co acted as the financial advisor to JOT Automation in a transaction where Global Equipment Services Inc (GES) became investor in and strategic partner of JOT Automation.
As a part of the ownership arrangement, GES and JOT Automation have agreed on a strategic partnership, where JOT Automation outsources mass production of its equipment to GES.
JOT is a pioneer in automation and testing solutions for electronics production, while GES offers equipment design, manufacturing, and maintenance services, especially for the semiconductor industry.
JOT’s press release can be read here and GES’s release is found here.
.Oehlandt & Co acted as the financial adviser to JOT in the transaction. January 2017.
