Nordian secures debt financing for the acquisition of BlueTrail

September 2023 — Nordian Capital has raised debt financing for the acquisition of BlueTrail Group B.V., a provider of highly qualified IT professionals to semi-government institutions. Acquisition financing was obtained from ING.

Nordian Capital is an independent private equity firm that was founded in 2014, out of Rabo Capital (Rabobank) and Friesland Bank Investments. The company is headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and focuses on supporting its portfolio companies, accelerating their growth.

BlueTrail, founded in 2011 and based in Alphen aan de Rijn, the Netherlands, is a fast-growing intermediary mainly focused on providing highly educated IT professionals primarily to semi-government institutions and municipalities. Such professionals include project managers, software engineers and IT infrastructure specialists. BlueTrail is well-prepared to address the rising demand for scarce IT professionals to drive digitization, supported by a strong sourcing network and unique match making capabilities.

Supported by Nordian, BlueTrail’s focus will be on further strengthening the commercial side of the organization and creating additional demand by further participating in the public tender domain. In addition, BlueTrail and Nordian see potential in targeted acquisitive growth.

Bart Wille, CEO at BlueTrail, said: “We are delighted to welcome Nordian as a strategic partner. From the beginning, there was a strong click in our conversations, where humanity and entrepreneurship were at the forefront. This partnership will strengthen our unique position in the market while maintaining our DNA and serving our customers even better. Nordian shares our vision and commitment to quality and innovation, and we are confident that this is the beginning of a very successful partnership.”

Bas Stoetzer, partner at Oaklins’ debt advisory team, added: “We are proud to have assisted Nordian in securing the necessary debt financing and look back at a pleasant cooperation. We aim to unburden our clients, enabling them to focus entirely on closing the deal and future business plan. This deal highlights our capability to act as trusted advisor and run a smooth process even in today’s challenging financing landscape.”

Our role in the transaction

Oaklins’ debt advisory team in the Netherlands acted as the exclusive debt advisor to Nordian Capital and assisted in various aspects of this transaction, from structuring and negotiating to arranging the final debt package. This transaction complements a long list of international transactions Oaklins has advised on in the private equity and HR sector. On the back of this track record, Oaklins has detailed insights in sector dynamics, trends and prospects, as well as the key components of arranging a debt financing package.