Frank\u00adfurt am Main \u2014 vitro\u00adnet GmbH (\u201cvitro\u00adnet\u201d) and Deut\u00adsche Infra\u00adstruk\u00adtur und Netz\u00adge\u00adsell\u00adschaft mbH (\u201cDING\u201d), two invest\u00adments from the port\u00adfo\u00adlio of the private equity fund DBAG ECF mana\u00adged by Deut\u00adsche Betei\u00adli\u00adgungs AG (DBAG), are merging and will in future operate as the vitro\u00adnet Group in the fiber optic and energy infra\u00adstruc\u00adture market. The merger now agreed will create a group whose pro forma sales in 2020 amoun\u00adted to around 340 million euros and which now employs around 2,300 people at more than 30 loca\u00adti\u00adons in Germany.<\/p>\n
In the fast-growing market for the expan\u00adsion of fiber-optic and energy infra\u00adstruc\u00adture, a provi\u00adder is emer\u00adging with broad regio\u00adnal coverage and a range of services that covers all the main value-adding steps, from plan\u00adning and cons\u00adtruc\u00adtion of the faci\u00adli\u00adties to opera\u00adtion and service. The vitro\u00adnet Group conti\u00adnues to see good oppor\u00adtu\u00adni\u00adties to actively drive forward the conso\u00adli\u00adda\u00adtion of this frag\u00admen\u00adted market.<\/p>\n
In 2017, Deut\u00adsche Betei\u00adli\u00adgungs AG (DBAG) initi\u00adally struc\u00adtu\u00adred the manage\u00adment buy-out (MBO) of vitro\u00adnet GmbH along\u00adside DBAG ECF. This was follo\u00adwed in 2019 by the MBO of the STG Brauns\u00adberg Group, which has since been opera\u00adting under the name Deut\u00adsche Infra\u00adstruk\u00adtur und Netz\u00adge\u00adsell\u00adschaft mbH. In the year of acqui\u00adsi\u00adtion, vitro\u00adnet gene\u00adra\u00adted sales of 42 million euros, DING 18 million euros. In recent years, both compa\u00adnies have grown stron\u00adgly; 15 corpo\u00adrate acqui\u00adsi\u00adti\u00adons to date have contri\u00adbu\u00adted to this to a considera\u00adble extent. The Group\u2019s pro forma sales have thus increased almost six-fold.<\/p>\n
Since the start of the invest\u00adment, DBAG and DBAG ECF have inves\u00adted 49 million euros in the two compa\u00adnies, of which DBAG accounts for 22 million euros. DBAG will hold a stake of around 39 percent in the newly formed vitro\u00adnet Group, while DBAG ECF will hold 46 percent; most of the remai\u00adning shares will be held by the Group\u2019s manage\u00adment. The tran\u00adsac\u00adtion will have no further impact on the valua\u00adtion of the invest\u00adments in DBAG\u2019s balance sheet. Howe\u00adver, as of the most recent report\u00ading date of March 31, 2021, the value of the latest company acqui\u00adsi\u00adti\u00adons has been increased; these have also alre\u00adady been included in the fore\u00adcast for fiscal 2020\/2021, which was raised on March 26, 2021.<\/p>\n
vitro\u00adnet, based in Essen, Germany, has so far focu\u00adsed on acting as a gene\u00adral contrac\u00adtor for fiber-optic projects. In recent years, various specia\u00adlist compa\u00adnies along the value chain have been acqui\u00adred and inte\u00adgra\u00adted. vitro\u00adnet has thus deve\u00adlo\u00adped into one of Germany\u2019s leading end-to-end part\u00adners in what is known as FttH expan\u00adsion (FttH: fiber to the home), meaning that it can offer all the essen\u00adtial process steps for this expan\u00adsion. DING, based in Bochum, has so far stood for effi\u00adci\u00adent infra\u00adstruc\u00adture expan\u00adsion in the areas of tele\u00adcom\u00admu\u00adni\u00adca\u00adti\u00adons (fiber optics, FttH, mobile commu\u00adni\u00adca\u00adti\u00adons), energy (district heating, elec\u00adtri\u00adcity, eMobi\u00adlity) and utili\u00adties (gas, water, pipe\u00adline) in Germany.<\/p>\n
High market demand meets tight capacity In 2013, DBAG began inves\u00adt\u00ading in compa\u00adnies that expand or operate fiber-optic networks. The first two invest\u00adments (inexio and DNS:Net) were sold in 2019 and March 2021. In addi\u00adtion to vitro\u00adnet and DING, DBAG, toge\u00adther with DBAG ECF and DBAG Fund VIII, holds invest\u00adments in three other compa\u00adnies in the sector (netz\u00adkon\u00adtor nord, BTV and Deut\u00adsche Giga Access).<\/p>\n Larger projects of tele\u00adphone compa\u00adnies, utili\u00adties and public utilities \u201cOur custo\u00admers are incre\u00adasingly looking for provi\u00adders who can inde\u00adpendently handle ever-larger projects throug\u00adhout Germany,\u201d says Marc L\u00fctzen\u00adkir\u00adchen, Chair\u00adman of vitro\u00adne\u00adt\u2019s Manage\u00adment Board. \u201cWe can now fulfill this claim even better with the syner\u00adgies of the Group and the deca\u00addes of expe\u00adri\u00adence of our subsi\u00addia\u00adries.\u201d Last but not least, the new size of the Group will also improve its access to the capi\u00adtal market and thus the finan\u00adcing opti\u00adons for further corpo\u00adrate acquisitions.<\/p>\n About DBAG<\/strong><\/p>\n DBAG has made six plat\u00adform invest\u00adments rela\u00adted to broad\u00adband tele\u00adcom\u00admu\u00adni\u00adca\u00adti\u00adons expan\u00adsion in Germany since 2013. \u2014 Deut\u00adsche Betei\u00adli\u00adgungs AG, a listed company, initia\u00adtes closed-end private equity funds and invests \u2014 predo\u00admi\u00adnantly along\u00adside DBAG funds \u2014 in well-posi\u00adtio\u00adned medium-sized compa\u00adnies with poten\u00adtial. One focus for many years has been indus\u00adtry. An incre\u00adasing propor\u00adtion of equity invest\u00adments are in compa\u00adnies in the growth sectors of broad\u00adband tele\u00adcom\u00admu\u00adni\u00adca\u00adti\u00adons, IT services\/software and health\u00adcare. The long-term, value-enhan\u00adcing entre\u00adpre\u00adneu\u00adrial invest\u00adment approach makes DBAG a sought-after invest\u00adment part\u00adner in the German-spea\u00adking region. Assets mana\u00adged or advi\u00adsed by the DBAG Group amount to \u20ac2.5 billion.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Frank\u00adfurt am Main \u2014 vitro\u00adnet GmbH (\u201cvitro\u00adnet\u201d) and Deut\u00adsche Infra\u00adstruk\u00adtur und Netz\u00adge\u00adsell\u00adschaft mbH (\u201cDING\u201d), two invest\u00adments from the port\u00adfo\u00adlio of the private equity fund DBAG ECF mana\u00adged by Deut\u00adsche Betei\u00adli\u00adgungs AG (DBAG), are merging and will in future operate as the vitro\u00adnet Group in the fiber optic and energy infra\u00adstruc\u00adture market. The merger now agreed [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":37364,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[886,1364,1365,1366,1367,1368,1369,1372],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43482","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general-en","category-featured-en","category-private-equity-en","category-news-en","category-lawyers-tax-advisors-auditors-en","category-lawyers-tax-consultants-auditors","category-investors","category-consultant","news-category-deals-news-en"],"yoast_head":"\n
\n<\/strong>
\nThe Group is bene\u00adfiting from the dyna\u00admic growth in demand for high-perfor\u00admance Inter\u00adnet connec\u00adtions. This is trig\u00adge\u00adring strong demand for network expan\u00adsion services, which is being met by a shortage of corre\u00adspon\u00adding capa\u00adcity in the market. To date, around 70 percent of reve\u00adnue has been gene\u00adra\u00adted by the fiber-optic infra\u00adstruc\u00adture busi\u00adness. The Group\u2019s services range from project plan\u00adning for new networks and their cons\u00adtruc\u00adtion to the opera\u00adtion and servicing of fiber-optic networks. The service share in parti\u00adcu\u00adlar is to grow. Busi\u00adness in the energy and utili\u00adties market, which has so far accoun\u00adted for around 30 percent of sales, is set to bene\u00adfit from the energy tran\u00adsi\u00adtion, among other things: To enable eMobi\u00adlity on a large scale, for exam\u00adple, the infra\u00adstruc\u00adture will have to be trans\u00adfor\u00admed. The Group sees itself as one of the leading service provi\u00adders for infra\u00adstruc\u00adture expan\u00adsion in Germany.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>
\n\u201cWe have inves\u00adted in a growing market in which, howe\u00adver, speed in the further deve\u00adlo\u00adp\u00adment of the compa\u00adnies is decisive for invest\u00adment success,\u201d expres\u00adsed Tors\u00adten Grede, Spokes\u00adman of the Manage\u00adment Board of DBAG on the occa\u00adsion of the tran\u00adsac\u00adtion with regard to the 15 company acqui\u00adsi\u00adti\u00adons. \u201cWe will also support the newly formed group to conti\u00adnue to watch inor\u00adga\u00adni\u00adcally.\u201d This invol\u00adves, for exam\u00adple, closing exis\u00adting gaps in the regio\u00adnal offering.<\/p>\n