UNIT4 has been acquired by Advent following the central works council's approval

January 2014 — UNIT4 has been acquired by private equity firm Advent International.

UNIT4 is a global cloud-focused business software and services company aimed at helping dynamic public sector and commercial services organizations to embrace change simply, quickly and cost effectively. The UNIT4 group incorporates a number of the world’s leading change embracing software brands including Agresso, the company's flagship ERP suite for mid-sized and large services intensive organizations; Coda, the best-of-class financial management software; and FinancialForce.com, the cloud applications company formed with investment from salesforce.com.

Founded in 1984, Advent International is one of the largest and most experienced global investors dedicated solely to private equity. Since inception, the firm has invested in more than 280 buyout transactions in 39 countries and has over US$25 billion in assets under management. With offices on four continents, Advent has established a globally integrated team of over 170 investment professionals across North America, Europe, Latin America and Asia. The firm focuses on growth and traditional buyout and strategic repositioning transactions across five core sectors, including business and financial services, healthcare, industrial, retail, consumer and leisure, and technology, media and telecoms.

Our role in the transaction

Oaklins' debt advisory team in the Netherlands assisted the works council in forming an opinion on the proposed financing structure for the public offer for 100% of the shares of UNIT4 N.V by Advent International. The team also assisted on information requests towards management and investors, enabling the central works council to make a founded decision.