BDA advises on sale of majority stake in Savera to Partners Group

August 19, 2014 (PRLEAP.COM) Business News
August 19, 2014 - Business Development Asia ("BDA") is pleased to announce that the shareholders of Suzhou Savera Shangwu Elevator Riding System Co., Ltd. ("Savera") have signed an agreement with Partners Group to sell a controlling stake in Savera. Originally founded in Spain, Savera has grown to become the world's largest manufacturer of elevator guide rails, a key component in the construction of elevators. Partners Group is one of the world's largest global private markets investment management firms. The transaction is expected to close in late 2014.

This alliance between two market leaders in their respective fields will enable Savera to accelerate its growth plans and to optimize its operations. Existing shareholders and key senior management will remain with the business.

BDA acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Savera on the transaction. With an overall enterprise value of over US$450m, the acquisition is the largest industrial sector investment by a financial sponsor in China in 2014 to date.

Mr. Diego Labarquilla, Chairman of Savera, commented: "Partners Group and Savera both believe in the value of long-term vision and commitment to excellence. I am excited to work together with Partners Group to continue Savera's growth and to develop it into the world's leading elevator component company."

Christoph Rubeli, Co-CEO and Head of Private Equity Directs, Partners Group, commented: "We are excited as a firm to announce this acquisition in China, a market we believe continues to offer attractive opportunities for investment. The Savera acquisition is a perfect fit with our relative value strategy of seeking out mid-market leaders and working with them to expand their business further. Savera is ideally positioned to benefit from the continued trend of urbanization in China and other developing countries, which provide robust support to the overall real estate construction sector."

Kelvin Yu, Managing Director and Head of China at Partners Group, added: "We are looking forward to working with Diego Labarquilla, Cai Liansheng and Savera's management team to bring the company into its next phase of growth. Our value creation plan will involve expanding the company's geographical coverage, identifying suitable acquisition targets and operating partners, increasing R&D activity in China and optimizing the company's organizational structure, corporate governance and business operations. Partners Group also looks forward to introducing the company to its global network of industry advisors and private equity investment partners."

Charles Maynard, one of BDA's founding partners added: "We are very pleased to have helped Savera's shareholders reach a definitive agreement with such a high quality private equity buyer. This is another example of BDA creating value for its clients by divesting Asian businesses through structured global sale processes."

BDA Deal Team
  • Charles Maynard, Senior Managing Director, Beijing
  • Jeffrey Wang, Managing Director, Shanghai
  • Simon Kavanagh, Managing Director, Hong Kong
  • Alex Ditchfield, Senior Associate, Shanghai
  • Jiageng Li, Associate, Shanghai
  • Vincent Kan, Associate, Hong Kong

  • About Savera
    Savera is the world's leading global manufacturer of elevator riding path solutions, notably elevator guide rails and accessories, and other elevator mechanical components. It was founded in 1967 in Spain and in 2012 moved its corporate headquarters to China, which is currently the world's largest elevator market. Savera is a key supplier to all eight of the global elevator OEMs, namely Hitachi, KONE, Schindler, Mitsubishi, Otis, ThyssenKrupp, Fujitec and Toshiba. Savera currently has eleven facilities across China, Germany, India and Spain. www.saveragroup.com

    About Partners Group
    Partners Group is a global private markets investment management firm with over EUR 30 billion in investment programs under management in private equity, private real estate, private infrastructure and private debt. The firm manages a broad range of customized portfolios for an international clientele of institutional investors. Partners Group is headquartered in Zug, Switzerland and has offices in San Francisco, Houston, New York, São Paulo, London, Guernsey, Paris, Luxembourg, Milan, Munich, Dubai, Mumbai, Singapore, Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo and Sydney. The firm employs over 700 people, is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (symbol: PGHN) with a market capitalization of CHF 6 billion and a major ownership by its partners and employees. www.partnersgroup.com

    About BDA
    Business Development Asia LLC ("BDA") is a leader in cross-border investment banking. BDA advises on M&A, capital raising, and restructuring. BDA has been consistently owned and managed by the same team since 1996. It has a track record of providing independent advice to blue-chip corporate and financial sponsor clients from North America, Europe and Asia. BDA was named Investment Banking Firm of the Year at the ACG Champion's Awards in 2014. It is headquartered in New York with offices in London, Bahrain, Mumbai, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Seoul and Tokyo. BDA formed a partnership with William Blair & Company in 2011. BDA carries out its US securities business through BDA Advisors Inc., a broker-dealer registered with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and a member of FINRA and SIPC. www.bdallc.com

    For more information regarding this transaction, please contact Charles Maynard in Beijing at +86 10-5737-9028, Jeffrey Wang in Shanghai at +86 21-5407-5580 or Simon Kavanagh in Hong Kong at +852 3529-2002.

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