Global Business Insight Volume 5, Issue 5

GLOBAL B U S I N E S S

VOLUME 5, ISSUE 5

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F I N A N C E

B U S I N E S S

MARJOLEIN DIEPERINK

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S E C T O R

N E W S

I N S I G H T

Liontrust’s Harriet Parker navigating GDPR threats and opportunities As more of our lives are carried out online, protecting personal or corporate data from theft continues to offer opportunities for investment.

JOINS AKD AS PARTNER

PERBOX

CHINESE BANKS OVERSHADOW WESTERN

PARTNERS WITH PENSIONBEE

counterparts in the latest Global Bank Rankings.

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CONTENTS 12 19 22 34 42 56 62

DWS APPOINTS PRIVATE EQUITY CFO DWS announced the appointment of Neel Mehta.

taxand global conference 2018

The panel discussed the evolving approach to the structuring and financing of mergers and acquisitions across the globe

38

perkbox partners with pensionbee To help find and consolidate old, lost pensions.

68 71 74

uk scale-up companies are on the rise and new report finds almost half are founded by under 34s

clessidra sgr

Acquisition of 100% of Scrigno Group

permira announces

Sale of Magento Commerce to Adobe for US $ 1.68 Billion.

Claranet acquires union solutions

VOLUME 5 ISSUE 5

Enhancing hosting and cloud expertise and reach in retail, legal and financial sectors

Mastercard Launches

accelerate to continue to unleash the potential of Fintechs.

complexity is challenging

and slowing down the corporate renewable energy transition.

wavemaker announces

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Rabe Iyer as Mena CEO

home credit india raises inr

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6 billion in funding in Jan-Mar to support business growth.

48

76

more guidance and support needed from government if electric vehicle crossover target is to be achieved.

sports events 365

Enters the Chinese Market with first cooperation agreement with CTRIP

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MARJOLEIN DIEPERINK

Joins AKD as partner.

Marjolein will start at AKD on 14th May 2018

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BUSINESS

INSIGHT

LIONTRUST’S HARRIET PARKER NAVIGATING GDPR THREATS AND OPPORTUNITIES As more of our lives are carried out online, protecting personal or corporate data from theft continues to offer opportunities for investment.

Several businesses are finding better ways to protect this growing area of the economy and Enhancing digital security has been a key theme across our Sustainable Future funds for many years.

This theme is becoming ever-more important with a number of high-profile breaches recently leading to growing concerns about how personal data is managed and the new European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) coming into force on 25 May this year.

This requires companies to prove they understand where data is held and who has access to it, and also introduces stricter rules on security and processing. From a scale perspective, it is important to note this regulation does not just apply to EU businesses but to any company holding European data and the penalties for noncompliance are are considerable, with fines up to €20bn or 4% of revenue, whichever is higher.

Key requirements under GDPR: • Secure processing of data • Pseudonymisation or encryption of personal data.

• Software developed with security in mind (privacy by design and by default).

• Increased rights for data subjects, the right to “be forgotten” and data portability.

Initial research last year showed corporate disclosure on this issue was limited and we continue to assess the level of preparedness among our holdings. Smaller companies with fewer resources could be at significant risk, for example, given the potential fines and loss of consumer trust.

Initial research from Ernst & Young suggests that half of relevant companies will not be fully compliant with requirements by the deadline, suggesting the regulation should be a catalyst for higher IT spending in Europe over the longterm. Areas set to benefit include vulnerability management, security analytics, identity and data protection technologies, and storage software.

In the lead up to the GDPR deadline, we have been investigating other opportunities among the growing number of companies innovating in the digital security space. This spans a broad range of businesses, involving analysis of vendors, master data management (MDM) companies and larger systems integrators and consultants with a high percentage of revenues coming from products exposed to digital security growth. Current holdings with exposure to this include pure-play security software providers such as Sophos in the UK and Splunk in the US.

Although we see many organisations allocating additional spending to comply with GDPR, a good proportion of this money looks set to be channelled towards external advisory services, benefiting companies with greater involvement in this area. But if half of companies are not yet prepared, we believe there could also be an upsurge in demand for cyber security products.

Our GDPR focus is twofold: we continue to look for businesses benefiting from the Enhancing digital security trend but as many of the companies in our Funds have to comply with the regulations, it has also become a key engagement issue.

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Sophos provides information technology security and data protection products, offering protection against viruses, malware, spyware, intrusions, unwanted applications, spam, policy abuse and data leakage. Splunk develops web-based application software that collects and analyses data generated by websites, applications, servers, networks and mobile devices and its products can be used alongside traditional digital security products to better assess threats, incidents and responses.

HARRIET PARKER INVESTMENT MANAGER AT LIONTRUST

We will watch the impact of GDPR in the months after May with interest: when similar rules came into force in the Netherlands, for example, there were over 1,000 breaches in the first 100 days. It will be here that we get to understand how well companies have prepared. As a digital security expert said to us recently: “You’ll never know when you’ve overspent on security, but you’re sure to find out when you haven’t spent enough.”

Harriet Parker, Investment manager, Liontrust Asset Management

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BUSINESS

ASSESING RISK/REWARD IN ARGENTINA AND ITALY BY

DAVID ROBERTS

HEAD OF GLOBAL FIXED INCOME AT LIONTRUST ASSET MANAGEMENT

Argentina has called in the cavalry in the shape of the International Monetary Fund. A sustained attack on the peso in recent months has impacted what is otherwise a reasonably sensible set of economic reforms and the country is expected to seek a flexible line of credit of around $30 billion. Given the reforms in progress, it is highly likely the IMF will look favourably on Argentina so the credit facility should be forthcoming, without too many strings attached and at a reasonable rate.

It is going to take some time for this to work through the system however and for investors to feel confident Argentina will be able to stand on its own feet without IMF support. Of course, for all those who have recently piled into emerging market debt, it is a salutatory reminder of the risks involved in what remains a very expensive market. Thankfully, we remain short EM risk. Returns on EM bonds are still dominated by capital flows in my opinion and even if the IMF rides to the rescue in Argentina, it may be too late to stem another period of outflows from the asset class.

Moving to Italy, I wrote a fortnight ago that the only logical conclusion was that Five Star and the League would need to reach an accommodation. A few people felt I was mad to suggest the extreme right and left could come together but now, it doesn’t look so crazy. Their common ground – opposing austerity and the European Union – seems more palatable to them than working with “established” parties. There is now a decent chance we see an early election in Italy and should there be no clear winner, we have a real possibility of an extreme left/right coalition forming a government over the summer. At present, I’m watching this one from the sidelines. It would have been lovely to be short Italian risk even at already cheap levels. But while I have been right in the short term, trying to interpret Italian politics in the long run is a mug’s game. We remain zero weighted to Italian sovereign and bank debt. I’m happy there for now and if deterioration of politics causes fallout in other risk assets, such as French debt, then I’ll look to play there.

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INSIGHT

HIGH NET WORTH INVESTORS FAVOUR FINTECH, CAPITAMA FINDS.

BUSINESS

OPEN BANKING TO BOOST UK ECONOMY BY 1BN

Fintech is the most popular sector among high net worth and professional investors, according to Capitama, the direct private investment platform. Analysis of the preferences of the registered investors of Capitama, which includes more than 300 individuals, family offices, PE firms and investment offices has indicated that fintech and technology investment opportunities more generally are the two most popular sectors among investors.

Capitama’s current registered investors have a total annual investment capacity of £7.6bn. Of this total capacity, investors have expressed an annual investment capacity of £5bn into Private Equity opportunities, with £2.3bn total annual investment in Debt and Income opportunities. The interest of the registered investors in Philanthropic and Social Impact opportunities currently stands at £300m per year. This is an additional theme on Capitama given the rise in interest in these organisations from wealthy individuals and organisations. 69% of Capitama investors are interested in fintech investment opportunities and 67% want to see software and technology deals. Of the nine different investment types available on Capitama, Growth funding is the most popular, with 83% of Capitama registered Investors interested in this area, followed by Early stage investments (72%), Buy-outs (63%), and Real Estate (47%).

Simon Ramery, Co-Founder and CEO at Capitama, said: “Fintech is a sector that has seen huge growth in the past three years and evidence suggests it’s just the start. Our data shows that investors see real value in the companies operating in this space, and that they see a strong future for the UK fintech scene despite Brexit. We’re also really excited about the commitment of investors to look at philanthropic and social impact investing. £300m is a considerable total of investable capital and we hope to be able to help put this to good use.”

Brett de Bank, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Capitama, said: “Over half of our registered investors are individuals, showing that private investment is a thriving and growing trend.

This community is interested in a diverse range of investment opportunities, from buy-out, to growth and philanthropic opportunities but principally having more control and choice over where they invest their capital. We launched Capitama with the aim to help businesses raise capital and scale their businesses efficiently. As we continue to grow and introduce more Investors to the platform we hope to help more companies reach their potential.” Capitama currently has 12 live opportunities, amongst those include Simba Sleep, an online mattress supplier and one of the UK’s fastest growing company’s’, Quiqup an innovative on demand, last mile logistics services and solutions company and City Harvest a food redistribution charity. Via Capitama, City Harvest is seeking £2.5m of additional investment to deliver 23,000 nutritious meals a week to those living in poverty in London.

About Capitama Capitama is the direct private investment platform for sophisticated and professional investors. It provides private investors such as UHNWIs and HWNIs, Family Offices, venture capital firms and sovereign wealth funds access to sponsor backed investment opportunities across a variety of asset classes. Capitama’s target investment areas include early stage, growth, buy-outs, real estate, debt and income, as well as philanthropic and social impact investing and donations.

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Capitama

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INSIGHT

BUSINESS

INSIGHT

DWS APPOINTS PRIVATE EQUITY CFO

DWS (formerly Deutsche Asset Management) today announced the appointment of Neel Mehta to the position of Chief Financial Officer of its global Private Equity business.

Mehta will lead the fund finance and accounting functions, working alongside the senior investment team to drive growth and support DWS’s circa EUR 2 billion (as of December 2017) in private equity secondaries, as the regulated manager for the Private Equity Secondary Opportunities Fund “SOF” programme. Mehta will be based in London.

As a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, Mehta is highly skilled in all aspects of accounting, finance, regulation and tax. He joins the business with a thorough understanding of the private equity life cycle, including fundraising and limited partner due diligence - gained through previously held positions with managers and general partners of both fund-of-funds (primary and secondary) and direct private equity businesses.

With over 20 years of experience, most recently Mehta was Finance Director at Mayfair Equity Partners LLP, where he built and managed the accounting and finance function, including fund structuring and regulatory planning. Prior to this, he was Finance Manager at Keyhaven Capital Partners Limited and a Finance and Investment Accountant at RIT Capital Partners Plc. Mehta is a member of the BVCA Regulatory Committee. Mark McDonald, Global Head of Private Equity at DWS, said: “Neel has a proven and respected skill set in shaping financial best practice and a deep knowledge of the private equity landscape which will be critical as we re-position our business.’’ He added: ‘We will continue to grow a best-in-class team that is focused on delivering value for our current and future clients”.

“I’m very pleased to be joining the DWS Private Equity team at such an important juncture. DWS is a world renowned institution and I look forward to working with Mark and the team to continue to deliver best-in-class systems, processes, structures and controls for our stakeholders.”

This follows the appointment of Daniel Green, Head of EMEA Private Equity, in January of this year.

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INSIGHT

BANKING HEADS REVEAL PLANS TO TAKE

ON THE FINTECH CHALLENGE

Saxo Payments Banking Circle, the global scale financial utility, has published a white paper which provides insight into the thinking of those working in the banking sector about future challenges. Following in-depth interviews with heads of correspondent banking, cash management and transaction banking, at large and mid-tier institutions including BNP Paribas, Danske Bank, Standard Chartered and Citi, the detailed white paper reveals that banks of all sizes are stepping up to meet the FinTech threat head-on.

The changing landscape of cross border banking and payments shows how banks are in pole position to seize the opportunity of the industry overhaul being brought about by the growth of digital. Reflecting the general attitude of all interviewees, Marc Recker, Global Head of Institutional Market Management at Deutsche Bank commented: “We’re not complacent but to date we’ve not seen major impact from FinTechs in the cross border payments space. That said, we expect banks to collaborate with FinTechs in areas where this results in additional value for clients.”

Lars Sjögren, Global Head of Transaction Banking at Danske Bank added, “Customer expectations and demands for solutions on the customer side are increasing … if you partner with someone from a totally different industry you can bring reach on a global level.”

SWIFT’s Head of Banking, Harry Newman, describes correspondent banking as “A child of the 1980s,” and Citi’s Managing Director of Payments and Receivables, Ireti Ogbu agrees that cross border payments in terms of the traditional SWIFT payments have had their day, and better solutions are entering the field: “This market is ripe for change. Recently there have been significant steps forward with the launch of SWIFTnet, initiatives like GPI and the exploration of incorporation of new technology and FinTech partnerships into the existing SWIFT model.”

Wim Grosemans, Head of Product Management, Payments and Receivables at BNP Paribas added: “It’s good that new players push us to question client experience. There’s lots of reasons to do this. If FinTechs are doing things better than us – let’s integrate, let’s work differently.” The Banking Circle commissioned research clearly shows how banks of all sizes are embracing the concept of open competition and accepting the need to work with external partners across the ecosystem to provide corporate customers with the best service.

Partnerships with Financial Utilities, such as Banking Circle, are identified as being a prerequisite for survival in the digital economy.

“As the international banking and payments map is redrawn, the winners will be those institutions – large and small – that can fully embrace a digital mindset,” comments Anders la Cour, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Saxo Payments Banking Circle. “However, banks will only benefit from digital evolution if they are committed to providing an excellent service for their customers, coupled with the openness to internal disruption and the boldness to knock down legacy walls, in order to effectively meet changing market needs.”

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BUSINESS

ip assets of prominent urban streetwear brand, bench, on the market

For almost thirty years, Bench has occupied a central and iconic position on the high-street for fashion, streetwear and lifestyle products, and in 2011, the Company generated circa £150 million in revenue.

The Company cites both recent difficulties in the UK retail market and a major logistics issue in 2016 as factors contributing to its current scenario.

Despite the Company’s current challenges, confidence exists that the Bench brand has continued potential for growth and could have a bright future with the right strategy. Bench is a robust international brand, with a proven track record in retail sales, wholesale, e-commerce and through international licensing agreements in Europe and North America.

Metis Partners has been appointed by the Joint Administrators, Martha Thompson, Antony Nygate and Kerry Bailey of BDO LLP, to support the marketing and sale of Bench’s extensive IP portfolio.

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INSIGHT

BUSINESS

INSIGHT

TAXAND GLOBAL CONFERENCE 2018 ‘Déjà vu all over again’ – M&A when the rules are constantly changing At Taxand’s 2018 Global Conference in Washington DC in the US, a panel discussed the evolving approach to the structuring and financing of mergers and acquisitions across the globe. The panel included Adam Benson (USA), Frédéric Teper (France), Cassius Carvalho (Brazil), and Mike Benetello (South Africa).

Tim Wach, Managing Director of Taxand, summarises the session below: Global M&A markets remain strong at present with activity and prices at historically high levels, although 2017 saw a decline from the peaks of previous years. This overall decline was largely driven by the US, while Europe continues to be teeming with deal activity. Valuation multiples have also reached their alltime high in both the US and Europe, largely due to a higher degree of political stability, a stronger economic backdrop, and better access to debt capital. 2018 should continue this trend, particularly in the US where we see a pro-business government, and given the level of technology deals emerging.

Against this backdrop of substantial global M&A activity, the role of tax in these deals is of increasing importance, not least given the degree of complexity and scrutiny has heightened in recent years.

Reputational risk has certainly moved up the agenda, with major multinationals conducting significant due diligence on potential targets to assess not only potential economic risk but also whether there is potential risk of being tarred with accusations of aggressive tax planning.

Political issues are also affecting the deal landscape. Cross-border M&A between the UK and EU countries, for example, could be further complicated by a hard Brexit, which would create major issues for many transactions. Appetite to use the UK as a holding company location is almost certainly likely to decrease as we move forward.

Companies are also having to navigate the impact of the OECD’s BEPS legislation and making sure that any M&A is suitably futureproofed against any potential future tax changes, particularly for businesses linked to the digital economy. The US is also presents unique challenges given the recent tax reforms and the many uncertainties from them that are still to be resolved.

Our panellists reminded us that in the heat of a deal, one must never forget the potential for complications further down the line to be minimised, affecting the overall value of doing the deal in the first place. In this environment, the need for thorough planning and due diligence cannot be overestimated.

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BUSINESS

UK CONSUMERS TO TARGET BUSINESSES WITH ONSLAUGHT OF DATA PRIVACY REQUESTS FOLLOWING DEADLINE FOR GDPR COMPLIANCE

New findings from a study by Veritas Technologies, a leader in multi-cloud data management, indicate that many organisations will be inundated with requests for personal information from UK consumers, with two in five (40%) already planning to take advantage of their data privacy rights within six months of the newGeneral Data Protection Regulation coming into force on May 25, 2018.

Under the new GDPR, European Union residents will have greater control over their personal data. Currently, EU residents already have the right to ask a company what personal data is held on them (e.g., gender, age, location, sexual preference, religious beliefs, passport/ driver’s licence information, etc.) and beginning May 25, 2018, they will also have enhanced rights to ask to have their data deleted (‘right to be forgotten’). Businesses will be required to sufficiently respond to these requests within one month of receiving the request.

A new study, commissioned by Veritas and conducted by 3GEM, surveyed 3,000 adults, including 1,000 in the UK. It reveals that consumers are most likely to target the following industries with personal data requests: • Financial services companies, including banks and insurance companies (56%) • Social media companies (48%) • Retailers (46%) • Former, current or potential employers (24%) • Healthcare providers (21%) The findings come as consumers reveal an increasing need to regain control over their personal data as trust in businesses to protect data fades, and as more and more consumers express a desire to put organisations to the test to understand whether they value consumer rights. “In light of recent events surrounding the use of personal data by social media, and other, companies, consumers are taking much more of an interest in how their data is used and stored by businesses across many industry sectors,” said Mike Palmer, executive vice president and chief product officer, Veritas. “With a flood of personal data requests coming their way in the months ahead, businesses must retain the trust of consumers by demonstrating they have comprehensive data governance strategies in place to achieve regulatory compliance.”

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INSIGHT

The driving force behind a rise in data privacy requests

The forthcoming GDPR will impact any organisation that gathers, processes or stores the personal data of individuals in the EU. The research shows UK consumers welcome their enhanced privileges. Of those that intend to exercise their rights, two-thirds (65%) plan to request access to the personal data a company holds on them, while the majority (71%) intend to exercise their right to be forgotten under the new regulations.

The key drivers for exercising their data privacy rights are: • Increased control over personal data: over half (56%) of respondents don’t feel comfortable having personal data sit on systems that they have no control over.

• A clearer understanding of what data companies hold on them: over half (56%) want to understand exactly what personal information companies hold on them.

• Data breaches increase the likelihood of receiving requests for personal data: nearly half (47%) of respondents will exercise their rights to request personal data and/or have that data deleted, if a company that holds their personal information suffers a data breach.

• Businesses are not trusted to protect personal data: over a third (37%) intend to exercise their data privacy rights because they do not trust companies to effectively protect their personal data.

• Consumers want to put companies to the test: over a quarter (27%) want to test businesses to understand how much their consumer rights are valued before deciding whether to continue doing business with them.

• Consumers want to get revenge: eight per cent will exercise their data privacy rights simply to irritate a company that they feel has mistreated them.

Under the new GDPR, this influx of personal data requests will need to be answered by organisations within a one month time limit. But meeting this timeframe may be difficult as many organisations have limited visibility into what data they have and where it is located. Most consumers do not expect organisations to be capable of fulfilling their requests under the new regulation. The majority (79%) believe that organisations won’t be able to find and/or delete all of the personal data that is held on them, and a fifth (20%) believe that businesses will only be able to deliver up to (50%) of the personal data they hold.

“It’s imperative that businesses embrace technology that can help them respond to these requests quickly, with a high degree of accuracy. This means having the ability to see, protect and access all of the personal data they hold regardless of where it sits within their organisation. Businesses that fail to recognise the importance of responding effectively and efficiently to personal data requests will be putting their brand loyalty and reputation at stake,” added Palmer.

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MIKE PALMER

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF PRODUCT OFFICER

BUSINESS

INSIGHT

Why are young entrepreneurs storming the scale-up community?

UK SCALE-UP COMPANIES ARE ON THE RISE AND NEW REPORT FINDS ALMOST HALF ARE FOUNDED BY UNDER 34S

The number of scale-up businesses in the UK is rising fast and almost half (42%) have been founded by people aged 34 and under, according to a new report: Dream bigger: The scale-up moment, from Smith & Williamson, the accountancy, tax and investment management group. In a sign that young entrepreneurs are taking the high-growth business community by storm, the study found over twice as many 18-34 year-olds heading up scaleup businesses as there are among their slower growth peers (18%).

The study explores what traits these highly successful businesses and their founders share. One key conclusion is that their attitude towards tech and innovation is giving them an edge. This perhaps gives a clue as to why younger entrepreneurs, who have grown up as digital natives, are flourishing in today’s business environment. Half (50%) of high-growth companies say tech advances have been critical to their growth, compared to just 18% of slower-growth firms. More than a third (34%) also believe that having an innovative business plan has been key to their success. This falls to a quarter (27%) among non-scale-ups, and to 21% among micro-companies, employing ten or less people.

Competitive, hungry, ready: the scale-up mindset

The research also shows that scale-ups display a greater sense of urgency than other businesses. Almost one in three (32%) reach their high-growth status in the minimum possible time of three years, while eight in ten (84%) join the club within a decade of launching. After this, the chances of a business achieving consistent high growth fall significantly. Scale-up founders also have a more bullish mindset than other firms and this extends to two of the biggest business issues of the day; Brexit and GDPR. The high-growth firms in the study were more than twice as likely as non-scale-ups (37% vs 12%) to think the UK government’s current policy, such as its approach to the EU or UK trade negotiations with the Trump administration, would have a positive effect on their business, and almost three times as likely (38% vs 15%) to believe that new regulation would benefit them.

John Morris, Scale-up lead at Smith & Williamson, said: “It’s been fascinating to gain insight into how such extremely successful companies think and feel. We have uncovered considerable differences between scale-ups and the rest of the business community, in both mentality and approach. But, 91% of businesses want to grow further, and I am convinced almost any of them can emulate scaleup business success - provided they have the right growth toolkit.”

“Scale-ups are more optimistic, more bullish and consequently less risk averse. They embrace technology and innovation, using it to their advantage. They are eager for growth and foster a culture of learning and openness, while keeping a close eye on the competition.

These traits need not be exclusive to high-growth businesses; any business leader daring to dream bigger can use them as the building blocks for future growth.”

The number of start-up businesses that are successfully scaling up increased by 12% in 2016, partly because of targeted government support for growing businesses. There were 35,210 scaleups, defined as companies that increase their revenues or staff numbers by 20% over three years, in 2016, up from 31,440 the year before (SUI).

But there are still relatively few businesses which experience the scale-up moment – less than one in 40. To address this, Smith & Williamson undertook the largest ever sentiment study of this business community, interviewing 500 scale-ups and over 500 slower-growth businesses.

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BUSINESS

CHINESE BANKS OVERSHADOW WESTERN COUNTERPARTS IN LATEST GLOBAL BANK RANKINGS

THE WORLD’S 10 LARGEST BANKS

1. INDUSTRIAL & COMMERCIAL BANK OF CHINA LTD.

4,009.25

2. CHINA CONSTRUCTION BANK CORP

3,400.24

3. AGRICULTURAL BANK OF CHINA LTD.

3,235.64

4. BANK OF CHINA LTD.

2,991.90

5. MITSUBISHI UFJ FINANCIAL GROUP INC.

2,787.73

6. JPMORGAN CHASE & CO.

2,533.60

7. HSBC HOLDINGS PLC

2,521.77

8. BNP PARIBAS SA

2,357.07

9. BANK OF AMERICA CORP.

2,281.23

10. CRÉDIT AGRICOLE GROUP

2,117.15

CHINA

CHINA

CHINA

CHINA

China’s ‘Big Four’ banks - Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Agricultural Bank of China and Bank of China, remained as the top four banks by assets yearover-year, posting a combined $13.637 trillion in assets. This is up $1.727 trillion since last year’s ranking, with half of this growth due to a strengthening yuan against the US dollar.

The U.S. had the next highest number with 11 banks holding $12.196 trillion in assets. However, Wells Fargo was pushed out of the top 10 spot by France’s Crédit Agricole Group, while other U.S.based banks also suffered ranking drops from the previous years. Goldman Sachs Group fell three spots last year to 35, Morgan Stanley dropped one spot to 38 and State Street Corp. fell ten spots to 100. In Europe, HSBC maintained its position as the largest European bank with total assets of €2.100 trillion (US$2.522 trillion).

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It was the only European institution above the €2 trillion mark. Among the top 10 European banks, six posted a year-over-year decline in assets in euro terms.

“Asian banks continue to dominate the S&P Global Market Intelligence global bank rankings with Chinese institutions claiming the top four spots,” said JP O’Sullivan, Managing Director of Financial Institutions at S&P Global Market Intelligence.

“As bank profitability improves in terms of return on average equity, we expect banks to move away from cost-cutting and towards sustainable growth. In this low rate environment, growing the balance sheet can be an effective way to generate earnings. Moreover, as interest rates rise, we can expect a boost to bottom line earnings and this bodes well for future growth prospects within the banking sector.”

S&P Global Market Intelligence data shows that Chinese banks recorded the highest growth in assets in the past ten years. Nearly a third of the 20 largest S&P Global Market Intelligence-covered banks are based in China and reported an average of 190% increase in terms of asset growth over the decade.

US$B

US$B

US$B

US$B

JAPAN

The latest global bank rankings report from S&P Global Market Intelligence found that Chinese banks continued to expand in 2017, accounting for a fifth (18) of the world’s largest banks, collectively reporting $23.761 trillion in assets at the end of 2017.

TOTAL ASSETS

UNITED STATES

US$B

US$B

UNITED KINGDOM

US$B

FRANCE

US$B

UNITED STATES

US$B

FRANCE

US$B

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INSIGHT

BUSINESS

GLOBAL NO.1 BUSINESS INCUBATOR LAUNCHES NEW PROGRAMME

TO POWER HIGH-GROWTH UK COMPANIES

A new programme from the SETsquared Partnership to enable some of the UK’s best tech scale-up companies to become the sector giants of tomorrow, is expected to generate over £25bn by 2030. It will also create an additional 30,000 highskilled jobs in the tech sector, and help improve Britain’s poor investment record in research and development.

SETsquared, the Global No. 1 business incubator launched its Scale-Up Programme yesterday at the Houses of Parliament. Findings from Warwick Economics show that SETsquared is already creating a cumulative GVA of £8.6bn for the UK from its support for tech startups.

Don Spalinger, Chair of SETsquared Management Board, said: “Since SETsquared started, we have helped over 3,500 businesses which have gone on to create over 20,000 jobs and raise £1.5bn in investment.Today we are launching our new scale-up programme which will help hundreds of SMEs”

over the coming years access the knowledge and resources of our five Universities to accelerate their innovation and growth. This will benefit the UK economy in a major way.”

The Rt. Hon Greg Clark, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy added: “The SETsquared Partnership has not only helped nurture and grow British technology businesses, but it has also contributed £8.6 billion to the UK economy, which is an incredible achievement. Through our modern Industrial Strategy, we’re calling on businesses to invest in the latest technology trends, and through our Sector Deals and Grand Challenges, we want the UK to be at the forefront of the technology revolution and make Britain fit for the future.” The scale-up programme tackles the issue of how to ensure more UK tech start-ups develop to become major forces in their field. Warwick Economics estimate technology scale-ups are likely to produce 42% more GVA than traditional scale-ups and generate 16% more jobs.

SETsquared’s new scale-up programme has been supported by £5m of government funding through Research England’s Connecting Capability Fund which will enable hundreds of the most innovative scale-up companies to access support. Ministers have committed to increasing productivity in the UK and increasing spending on Research & Development from 1.7% of GDP to 2.4% to tackle these economic challenges. The UK currently ranks 22nd in a list of OECD developed countries.

Commenting on the impact that SETsquared’s member companies have on R&D, Don Spalinger added: “With the UK’s ‘R&D gap’, we want to show parliamentarians how SETsquared can drive innovation in the UK. Utilising our proven track record of supporting early stage tech companies to raise investment and building R&D partnerships with the Universities we can support these SMEs to become successful enterprises as they grow into global leaders in their industrial sectors.”

SETsquared has already undertaken a successful pilot programme. William Hartley, Managing Director at hofer powertrain UK Ltd, which took part said: “The SETsquared Scale-up Programme enabled hofer powertrain to work with the University of Bristol for the first time, this added a new research dimension to a £40 million automotive project that will be at the heart of hofer’s UK growth plans.”

Over 20 member companies from SETsquared were on hand to engage with parliamentarians and tell them about the challenges of starting or scaling a tech business in the UK.

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INSIGHT

BUSINESS

INSIGHT

TMT SECTOR TOPS DIVERSITY STAKES Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) companies consider their workforce the most diverse in terms of ethnicity and education, according to the latest YouGov survey, commissioned by leading audit, tax and consulting firm RSM. The survey of more than 300 UK middle market business leaders revealed that 85 per cent of the 52 TMT firms questioned said they were educationally diverse, whilst 83 per cent said they were ethnically diverse. Gender, sexual orientation, disability and social background also featured as measures.

Carolyn Brown, head of client legal services at RSM said: ‘The past decade has seen a major shift in our understanding of what constitutes a well-run business.

Performance measurement goes far beyond the company balance sheet. Good business ethics, and the ability to demonstrate those credentials through accountability and transparency are more important than ever before. In a tightening regulatory environment, outmoded thinking around non-financial reporting, or governance, will leave you and your organisation exposed.’

Construction firms considered themselves the least diverse on most measures when compared to the TMT, manufacturing, financial services and consumer sectors.

Three-quarters of London companies consider themselves diverse in gender, ethnicity and social background, a trend mirrored in the North-East & Yorkshire. Firms in the South employ the most diverse workers in terms of education.

LAW FIRM AKD EXPANDS ENERGY PRACTICE MARJOLEIN DIEPERINK JOINS AKD AS PARTNER

Leading Benelux law firm AKD expands its energy practice with the arrival of Marjolein Dieperink as a partner. Managing partner Erwin Rademakers: “The energy transition is in full swing. The expertise and experience Marjolein brings to AKD will allow us to further strengthen our position in the energy sector, and to respond to the increasing demand for legal advice on complex issues within this industry.”

Marjolein Dieperink is an experienced lawyer with a strong focus on the regulatory aspects of the energy sector. She has ample experience in renewables such as solar, wind and heat projects and grids, advising market players and governmental bodies on issues such as subsidy grants, permits, state aid and tendering. Marjolein was involved in several offshore wind farm projects for large energy companies, foreign investors and developers. Marjolein Dieperink on joining AKD: “To make the energy transition a success and to achieve key objectives such as heat transition, the Climate Act and sustainable energy generation, it’s essential that governmental bodies and the energy industry intensify their cooperation. AKD holds a top position in the regulatory and environmental law markets, and has a sound customer base in the energy sector, both in the Netherlands and abroad. For me, this is the perfect base for being on top of legal developments and advising market players and governmental bodies.”

Prior to joining AKD, Marjolein was counsel at Houthoff’s energy team. Marjolein will start at AKD on 14 May 2018.

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Of the 317 middle-market firms surveyed, 40 per cent say a diverse workforce generates a positive reputation; 40 per cent felt a diverse workforce improves staff retention, attraction and well-being; yet 41 per cent don’t have mandatory diversity training and policies in place.

Kerri Constable, associate director at RSM Employers Services said: ‘The positive relationship between diversity and business commerciality is clearer than ever before. Organisations that embed inclusive cultures, put simply, are more likely to make better decisions, achieve higher returns and enjoy a more successful recruitment process.

‘The issue of diversity is right at the forefront of the minds of millennials and the incoming generation Z in particular. Address the issue well, and companies will gain a significant competitive edge.’

The survey supports RSM’s wider research, entitled ‘Beyond the balance sheet – helping you bring governance into focus’ which illustrates how financial metrics no longer form the only yardstick of success and covers a range of areas including equality and diversity, anti-money laundering and bribery act compliance.

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BUSINESS

INSIGHT

I’m sure we’ll see many collaborations and opportunities emerge from this programme between UK and local businesses. We are already benefitting from the support and guidance offered.”

first cohort of 24 uk smes selected to join the access india programme

The Access India Programme in the UK is a newly launched market entry support programme and the first of its kind for supporting UK businesses access to ‘Make in India initiative’ of the Government of India. The programme seeks to identify high-potential UK SME companies that possess high-end technologies and innovative products and will assist them in establishing themselves in India. For these companies, the programme will provide a detailed programme of activity, mentoring, networking opportunities and market entry support services. These services could be in areas including strategy advisory, operational market entry support, tax & legal support, financial services, project financing, M&A, location services, technology collaboration, facilitation of approvals from central and state agencies will be provided. The AIP Steering Committee is headed by H. E. Mr Y. K. Sinha, comprising of representatives of partner ministries and institutions who will be in charge of monitoring the programme and reviewing the progress on a quarterly basis.

The AIP project team includes: The High Commission of India in London has created a flagship programme – the Access India Programme in the UK. This newly launched market entry support programme is the first of its kind for supporting UK businesses access the Make in India initiative of the Government of India. The programme will solely focus on providing support to small and medium UK enterprises.

The First Cohort of 24 UK SMEs to be taken on board AIP was announced during the recent visit of PM Modi and his senior delegation to the UK. A meeting of these companies with Mr Ramesh Abhishek, Secretary DIPP and Invest India CEO, Mr Deepak Bagla was organised last month. Some of the larger UK companies including Perkins, BAE Systems, JCB, Rolls Royce, Renishaw and TWI, who are involved as mentors for AIP, were also present at the meeting. This is the first cohort selected fromthousands of applicants, with other cohorts to follow. One of the selected UK businesses joining the first cohort, Global Processing Services, Deputy CEO, Joanne Dewar comments, “It is a great honour to have been selected to be part of the first cohort for the Access India Programme. This initiative will truly help UK businesses understand and navigate the complex dynamics of the market in India and help lower perceived barriers to entry.”

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• Ambassador Dinesh K. Patnaik, Deputy High Commissioner, High Commission of India, London and Head of AIP Project Team • Mr Saikat Sen Sharma, Councellor (Economic & Commercial), High Commission of India, London • Mr Rahul Nangare, First Secretary (Trade), High Commission of India, London • Ms Kiran Khatri, Second Secretary, High Commission of India, London • Supported by AIP Knowledge Partner, UK India Business Council (UKIBC), responsible for the day-to-day management of the AIP Programme.

• Mr Richard Heald OBE, Group CEO, UK India Business Council • Mr Prasenjit Dhar, AIP Programme Manager & Sector Manager (Advanced Engineering & Energy), UK India Business Council

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MR Y.K SINHA INDIA’S HIGH COMMISSIONER

FINANCE

iwoca boosts is refinancing lines by £50 million

iWoca, one of Europe’s fastest growing small business lenders, has raised an additional £50 million in a debt facility provided by a syndicate of banks. The debt increase was led by NIBC Bank. Existing lenders in this syndicate, Shawbrook Bank and Pollen Street Capital, through one of its credit funds, also participated. iWoca will use this facility to provide financing to micro and small business customers. This increase comes at a time when the overall value of debt products provided by banks for small businesses is contracting. According to UK Finance, the value of loan facilities approved each quarter by high street banks for businesses with less than £2 million in annual turnover fell by 52.3% between Q1 2012 and Q4 2017, while the total number of VAT registered firms has increased by 23% to 2.7 million over the same period.

Since its launch iWoca has originated more than £400 million in critical loans to close to 20,000 small businesses in c.50,000 transactions. Michael Elalouf, CFO of iWoca, said: “This new debt facility provides iwoca with more fuel to provide critical finance to the micro and small businesses that are chronically underserved by the banks. Our mission is to break down barriers that stand between small business and finance. We are proud to have provided funding to 20,000 small businesses already but we’re only scratching the surface and hope to be able to reach many more.”

Karan Burman, Associate Director at Shawbrook Bank, said: “At Shawbrook we recognised the value of the iWoca proposition in the alternative finance space, particularly its potential in supporting under-served micro and small businesses across the UK. So, at Shawbrook we were very happy to provide iwoca with their first institutional funding line back in 2016, and to extend this support now as the business continues to grow.”

Michael Katramados, Head of Structured Lending at Pollen Street Capital, said: “We at Pollen Street Capital are business partners as well as capital providers. Our partnership with iWoca epitomises our aim to work with high-quality specialist businesses. We look forward to continuing working with iwoca to help them deliver long-term success and transformational growth.”

Nils Schaffner, Director at NIBC Bank, said: “At NIBC, our ambition is to make a difference for our clients; we seek to be entrepreneurial, inventive and professional. By providing iWoca with additional financing, we are proud to have supported the company in order to take the next step on their growth path in a decisive moment. We are confident that this supports the company in its ambition to become a European market leader.”

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FINANCE

CLESSIDRA SGR:

ACQUISITION OF 100% OF SCRIGNO GROUP

mario fera ceo of clessidra

Clessidra SGR, the leading Italian private equity firm, entered today into a definitive agreement for the acquisition of the entire share capital of Scrigno Group.

Based in Rimini, Scrigno is a leading manufacturer and distributor of counter-frames for pocket doors and windows worldwide. The company also manufactures and distributes armoured doors following the recent acquisition of Master, a company based in Piacenza. Scrigno is a classic Italian entrepreneurial success story started off by the intuition of its founder Mr. Giuseppe Berardi, who was able to revolutionize the concept of sliding door, transforming it into an original and different product with the introduction of the innovative solution of pocket feature. In almost 30 years, the brand Scrigno has become synonymous of quality and excellence of the Made in Italy.

Today, the group operates in over 20 countries in the world through commercial subsidiaries, besides Italy, in France, Spain and the Czech Republic. Thanks to the strength of its brand and product quality, Scrigno has constantly grown; in 2017, it recorded revenues of approximately 68 million euro, half of which realized abroad. Scrigno is the fourth investment made by Clessidra Capital Partners 3, Clessidra’s third fund under management. According to the agreement, Clessidra will acquire 100% of the parent company Scrigno Holding. The closing of the transaction is expected by the end of June, subject to approval by the competent authorities.

Mario Fera, CEO of Clessidra said: “With the acquisition of Scrigno we invest into a growing market segment with great potential for further development, especially outside of Italy. This transaction fits very well with Clessidra’s strategy to create value by investing in leading Italian brands and promoting a new phase of expansion underpinned by a solid industrial approach”.

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Marco Carotenuto, Managing Director of Clessidra added: “The decision to invest in Scrigno is sustained by the value of a brand synonymous with quality and excellence of the Made in Italy, manufacturing efficiency, managerial vision and competence imprinted by the Berardi family. We see a positive trend for the next years supported by the further strengthening of sales in Italy and abroad, the full integration of the business of Master and potential growth through acquisitions”.

Cavaliere del lavoro Giuseppe Berardi, founder of Scrigno, said: “The agreement with Clessidra represents a further step forward in the virtuous development undertaken by the company in the recent years”.

Mariacristina Berardi added: “We are proud of the work done by our organization and have found in Clessidra the ideal partner to whom to entrust the management of Scrigno”.

Linklaters acted as legal advisor to Clessidra; Roland Berger, KPMG and Studio Alonzo Committeri advised on the due diligence, while BNP Paribas on the financial aspects.

BDO and Prof. Francesco Gennari acted as financial and legal advisors respectively to the Berardi family.

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FINANCE

INTERTRUST IN JERSEY

MAKES THREE SENIOR PROMOTIONS AS THE BUSINESS CONTINUES TO GROW Intertrust in Jersey has made three senior appointments in Capital Markets, Real Estate and Private Wealth.

In Capital Markets, Cheryl Heslop has been promoted to associate director. She joined in 2004 and has 17 years’ experience in capital markets and structured finance. Ms Heslop currently sits on a number of boards, mostly for special purpose vehicles across multiple jurisdictions, as well as managing a team of administrators. Will Turner, who has more than 10 years’ experience, has been promoted to client director in the Real Estate team.

He oversees a team of administrators who service a number of complex structures centred around property investment and acts as a director on a number of real estate client boards.

Lucy Blampied has been promoted to client director in Private Wealth and has 19 years’ experience in the private client industry. She manages a team that specialises in providing administration services to high net worth individuals and families and also acts as a director on a number of client boards. The promotions come against a backdrop of continuous growth for the firm in Jersey.

Simon Mackenzie, managing director of Intertrust in Jersey, said: “It’s great that we’ve been able to promote Cheryl, Will and Lucy. These employees have frequently demonstrated their expertise and dedication to Intertrust and have consistently delivered the high-quality client service that we pride ourselves on; these promotions are well deserved.”

Intertrust currently employs more than 370 people in its Jersey office and invests significantly in employee training and development. Employees are encouraged to establish personal development plans and set targets for career aspirations and progression within the firm.

A recently launched Management Essentials Programme structures an employee’s development beyond their professional studies and has been designed to develop managerial skills and behaviours and build confidence.

24 new and aspiring managers are currently on the programme with a further 24 due to join in September.

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SIMON MACKENZIE MANAGING DIRECTOR OF INTERTRUST IN JERSEY

FINANCE

PERKBOX PARTNERS WITH pensionbee to help find and consolidate old, lost pensions

Clare Reilly, Head of Corporate Development at PensionBee, continues: “We are very excited to announce that Perkbox and PensionBee are joining forces to help all employees have happier and healthier retirements. Both Perkbox andPensionBee put online experience and customer empowerment first, and are aligned in their mission to give employees a happy, secure financial future, so it made sense to join forces. Moreover, happy futures start by taking control of your pension today. Our exciting new partnership is aimed at the 80% of employees who haven’t taken their old pensions with them when they changed jobs.

Employees will be able to easily find and combine all those lost, forgotten about pots into one shiny new online plan - to help them keep track of their retirement income, 24/7. A win-win outcome for both employers and employees”

Perkbox, UK’s fastest growing employee benefits platform, is today partnering with PensionBee, an online pension manager, to offer Perkbox users the chance to find and combine all their old lost pensions into one brand new online plan managed by the world’s biggest money managers.

This initiative comes shortly after Guy Opperman, Pensions Minister, announced that it had decided not to resurrect the proposal for the so called “pot follows members” system, allowing pension pots worth £10,000 or less to follow an employee automatically when they moved to a new employer.

With an average of 11-12 jobs in a lifetime and a lack of support from government in the transfer process, people are losing track of all their old pots. In fact, there’s already over £500m sitting in forgotten pots and the Department for Work and Pensions estimates that auto-enrolment will result in a total of 50 million by 2050.

PensionBee is the first and only technology operating in the UK that can identify, transfer and combine pensions for users. With pensions being the last thing on young people’s minds, and it becoming an incredibly important issue, this partnership represents an important step forward in the Perkbox mission to support customers with all their employee needs.

In addition to introducing the service, Perkbox will offer users a £50 financial reward once their first pension is transferred over, simply for joining through the Perkbox platform. It will also host a series of demos to familiarise Perkboxers with the PensionBee technology and get them up and running on the platform as soon as possible.

Chieu Cao, Cofounder and CMO of Perkbox says: “Regardless of the occupation, age or income, money is something we all worry about. Failing to save enough can result in financial stress impacting work performance, productivity and difficulty planning retirement dates. Employers are not only well placed to help solve the problem, but should also have a significant interest in doing so. This partnership will allow us to support employers in achieving this. What’s more, It represents an exciting opportunity to bring our mission - ‘to build a better society one relationship at a time’ - to the next level and I am thrilled about that. “

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CHIEU CAO

CLARE REILLY

COFOUNDER AND CMO OF PERKBOX

HEAD OF CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT AT PENSION BEE

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FINANCE

DELOITTE PARTNERS WITH FINTECH SCOTLAND TO DRIVE GROWTH ACROSS THE SECTOR

STEPHEN INGLEDEW CEO OF FINTECH SCOTLAND

The body representing Scotland’s thriving financial technology community, Fintech Scotland, has today announced it has entered a key strategic partnership with business advisory firm Deloitte. The firm has been appointed as global professional services partner and will support Fintech Scotland with considerable experience and connections to drive the sector’s growth across the country and on the global stage through innovation, collaboration and inclusion.

This led to the development of an industry-led Fintech strategy for Scotland and a detailed business plan to catapult Scotland onto the global stage. As a result of this, and for the first time, Scotland was recognised in the top 15 centres for Fintech growth in the influential Global Fintech Hub Federation Report that publishes annually. Deloitte have also been central to advising on the construct and creation of Fintech Scotland based on their experience in other parts of the world.

The announcement comes at a key time for the sector which, according recent Scottish Government figures, has attracted nearly £37 million of investment in the last decade. Kent Mackenzie, director and head of Fintech at Deloitte in Edinburgh, said: “We are hugely proud to be named as Fintech Scotland’s global professional partner. Since late 2015, we have immersed ourselves in Fintech, establishing what it means for financial services, and how Scotland can continue to establish itself as a leading global voice in the sector. Scotland’s reputation and expertise carry significant global weight and we intend to help to improve this position and accelerate further growth through our work with Fintech Scotland.”

The firm aims to bolster Scotland’s international reputation using their close relationships with Fintechs and other global hubs around the world and their experience of working with banks to help them understand and embed disruptive technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, and automation.

“For several years we have worked hard to develop a comprehensive understanding of the opportunities and challenges for all who operating in the sector, both in a domestic and global context, and through doing so determine a strategy that can see Scotland emerge as a leader in the global market and become an influential voice. Our intention is to continue to build on this work, leveraging our global Fintech networks and partnerships to provide major advantages for businesses and organisations working with Fintech Scotland in the years ahead.”

Commenting on the partnership, Stephen Ingledew, CEO of Fintech Scotland said: “We are hugely excited to be working with Deloitte as strategic partner. The firm has already contributed significantly in developing the Fintech ecosystem in Scotland and its breadth of professional services expertise and market leading capabilities will play a valuable role in achieving our ambitions.”

“Furthermore, Deloitte’s respected global leadership role with the established and emerging fintech hubs around the world will play a crucial role in developing our international collaboration opportunities going forward. We are very excited to be working with Kent Mackenzie and the Deloitte team across Scotland and on the international stage.”

Deloitte has been pivotal in the creation and delivery of Fintech Scotland. In 2016, the Firm was commissioned by the Scottish Government and Scottish Enterprise to conduct a scoping review report of the sector and organise a series of consultations with the Fintech ecosystem.

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FINANCE

PERMIRA ANNOUNCES SALE OF MAGENTO COMMERCE TO ADOBE FOR US $1.68 BILLION

Permira, the global private equity firm, today announced that a company backed by the Permira funds has signed a definitive agreement to sell Magento Commerce, the worldwide leader in cloud digital commerce innovation, to Adobe in an all-cash transaction for US$1.68bn. Hillhouse Capital, the Asiafocused investment firm, will also sell its stake in Magento to Adobe in this transaction.

Magento Commerce was acquired by the Permira funds from eBay Inc. in 2015 and received an investment from Hillhouse Capital in 2017. Over the past three years, Magento has undergone a period of rapid growth and transformation, which included: Creating a cloud-first platform for businesses of all sizes, enabling digital transformation from onpremise to cloud commerce systems, including advanced omni-channel, order management and business intelligence capabilities. Accelerating Magento’s global growth by enhancing operational execution and improving integration of Solution and Technology Partners, which included open source ecosystem monetization, market stratification into B2B and B2C verticals, and strategic deployment of capital to acquire core functionality and adjacent businesses. Empowering Magento to create world-class leadership with key hires in product, sales, marketing and business development.

“We are delighted to have partnered with the Magento management team during this period of impressive performance,” said Phil Guinand, Partner at Permira. “Magento has grown its customer-base and enterprise cloud business as a result of key investments in technology, marketing, client success, sales management and the open-source community ecosystem. Working closely with management to accelerate strategic potential is the DNA of Permira’s approach to technology investing. We were pleased to support Magento’s ambitions through our global platform and sector expertise, and we are confident that Magento has found a terrific home with one of the Company’s major existing partners, Adobe. Permira was a phenomenal partner over the last three years, helping us successfully execute our global growth plan,” said Mark Lavelle, CEO of Magento Commerce. “We leveraged Permira’s deep industry knowledge, operational expertise and international relationships to become one of the most popular commerce platforms in the world. We will continue our positive momentum as part of Adobe by combining the flexibility of the Magento Commerce Cloud with Adobe’s powerful content and personalization capabilities to serve clients across every industry and every geography.”

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of Adobe’s 2018 fiscal year, subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory review.

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SOVEREIGN SUCCESSFULLY EXITS

ACCIDENT MANAGEMENT SERVICES PROVIDER KINDERTONS FOR 8X MONEY

Sovereign Capital Partners, the UK private equity Buy & Build specialist, today announces that Kindertons, its nationwide specialist provider of outsourced accident management services for motor insurers and insurance brokers, together with claims management services, is to be acquired by ExamWorks, a portfolio company of Leonard Green & Partners. Completion is subject to change of control consent by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Solicitors Regulation Authority. The exit will deliver a gross return of 8x and a 73% IRR to investors.

Sovereign originally completed the management buy-out of Kindertons in October 2013. With Sovereign’s strategy of Buy & Build, Kindertons: completed four strategic acquisitions: Motorbike specialist Plantec in 2013, taxi credit hire expert Sovereign Automotive in 2016; niche credit hire provider Platinum Assistance in 2017 and specialist accident management provider Crusader Assistance in 2018; more than doubled its fleet to c.5,300 vehicles; grew the number of employee from 450 to over 1,000; delivered very strong organic growth increasing volumes, revenue and profitability, all by 30% p.a. resulting in EBITdA growing three-fold from c.£7m to c.£20m.

Sovereign worked closely with the management team to appoint Jon Walden as chairman, at the time of the original MBO to help grow Kindertons, and Neil Cunningham as CEO, in early 2016 to support founder succession. Sovereign also worked with the team to develop Kindertons’ brand positioning, operations, sales and finance function. Today, Kindertons is one of the largest, independent specialist credit hire providers in the UK, managing the full claims handling process on behalf of insurers, insurance brokers, motor dealers, garages and bodyshops, as well as providing replacement vehicles and managing the recovery, repair and storage of damaged vehicles.

Neil Cox, Partner, Sovereign Capital said: “We are delighted to have partnered such a strong management team and business which provides a high-quality and valued service to its introducers and motorists.

Kindertons has developed in both scale and service offering throughout the time of Sovereign’s partnership.

We wish the team every success for the future.”

Neil Cunningham, CEO, Kindertons commented: “Sovereign has been a highly supportive partner that has provided both the investment and expertise to help the Group go beyond all our expectations. We worked together to deliver a buy and build growth strategy, successfully completing four acquisitions and simultaneously investing in the business to support exceptional organic growth. We look forward to continuing to take the business from strength-to-strength.”

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FINANCE

PENSION FREEDOM BLIND SPOT PUTTING PUTTING 1.7M RETIREES AT RISK OF A ‘LATER-LIFE FINANCIAL CRISIS’

Four in five retirees (79%) using the new pension freedoms to manage their retirement savings face a potential ‘later-life financial crisis’ as they have not yet set up a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA), a report from Zurich warns.

More than 345,000 retirees using income drawdown to fund their retirement have not yet given a family member or friend the legal authority to make decisions on their behalf if they no longer can. The financial planning blind spot could prevent an individual trusted by the retiree from immediately stepping in to help them manage their affairs should they suddenly fall ill or lose mental capacity. Without an LPA in place, even next-of-kin would be forced to apply to the Courts to take charge of a relative’s finances.

The findings highlight the scale of an issue which has emerged since the Government scrapped rules compelling people to buy an annuity at retirement. Twice as many people are now choosing drawdown over annuities, giving them the responsibility of managing their income in retirement. If the gap continues to grow at the current rate, Zurich estimates it could leave 1.7 million retirees at risk by 2025.

Alistair Wilson, a savings expert at Zurich, said: “Registering an LPA has become even more important since the pension reforms. Thousands of people are now making complex decisions on their pension into old age, when the risk of developing a sudden illness or condition such as dementia increases. Despite this, many are unprepared for a sudden health shock or a decline in their mental abilities. The time to set up an LPA is well before you need it, and pension providers should be highlighting this to their customers.”

Harriet Hill, Programme Partnerships Officer at Alzheimer’s Society said: “An LPA can be a very important part of advance planning for a time when a person will not be able to make certain decisions for themselves. It allows the person to choose someone they trust to make those decisions in their best interests. This can be re-assuring and making an LPA can start discussions with family or others about what the person wants to happen in the future. We need to get to the stage where a LPA is taken out as a standard practice, with financial services advising people to do this as early as possible.”

“The stigma around the LPA, as with dementia, is compounded by its links to mental capacity. People are reluctant to consider a future where they may not be able to make their own decisions due to the connotations they associate with this. In cases where LPAs are not in place, assets and equity may be lost, or those in a vulnerable position may be forced to make decisions they are no longer able to make”.

“With more and more people moving into drawdown, this is creating a ticking time bomb that could leave thousands of people facing a potential later-life financial crisis. It is vital that people plan for a time when managing their pension might become hard, or even impossible, and speaking to a financial adviser is one of the best ways to do this.”

According to the Alzheimer’s Society, there are currently 850,000 people in the UK living with dementia. This could increase to over one million by 2025, and potentially double to two million by 2051. However, Zurich found just one in five (21%) people who have moved into drawdown since the pension reforms have registered an LPA. The study found that people with a financial adviser were almost four times more likely to have an LPA than those who had not sought advice (66% vs 17%).

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INVESTMENT

PRIVATE EQUITY INVESTMENT INTO EUROPEAN COMPANIES HITS TEN-YEAR HIGH

SAXO PAYMENT BANKING CIRCLE NAMED best b2b payments company

Private equity investment in European companies hit a ten-year high in 2017 at €71.7 billion, a 29% year-on-year increase, according to new data released today by Invest Europe. Almost 7,000 companies received investment, of which 87% were small and medium-sized enterprises.

Invest Europe’s 2017 European Private Equity Activity report is the industry’s most comprehensive and authoritative source of activity data. It reveals that private equity fundraising reached €91.9 billion in 2017, surpassing the previous year by 12% for the highest amount since 2008. European private equity managers put their investment capital to work at an increasing volume across all fund sizes, delivering decade high investment levels. Divestments (measured at cost) increased by 7% to €42.7 billion. This is the third highest level of the past decade, as around 3,800 European companies were exited in 2017. This 2017 European private equity report comes as the European Union enjoys its highest growth in a decade. The EU economy grew by 2.4% last year, according to figures from the European Commission. Globally, demand for private equity has risen, as investors increasingly look to the asset class for returns during this extended period of low interest rates.

“European private equity saw highs in both fundraising and investments in 2017, demonstrating that private capital markets are deepening as European economies are growing,” said Michael Collins, Invest Europe’s CEO. “This investment capital is supporting European companies of all sizes — helping start-ups to achieve scale, expanding SMEs and transforming large corporates.” Companies focused on consumer goods and services in Europe increased their share of private equity investment last year at 24.4% of the total. Almost equalling this were business-to-business products and services, increasing by 51% to account for 23.5% of the total. The technology sector (ICT) reached a ten-year investment high, with 17% of the total, a year-on-year increase of 6%.

France and Benelux-based companies received 27% of private equity investments in 2017. Close behind was the UK & Ireland with 26%, followed by DACH-based companies (20%), Southern Europe (13%), the Nordics (9%) and CEE (5%).

Pension funds provided 29% of all capital raised, followed by funds of funds (20%), family offices & private individuals (15%), sovereign wealth funds (9%) and insurance companies (8%).

ANDERS LA COUR

“In 2017, European private equity continued to be attractive to global investors. Asian investors contributed their highest ever share of investment, while North American investors continue to represent the highest share of non-European capital being put to work here,” said Collins. “Global investors are valuing the proven ability of European private equity managers to identify attractive investments across sectors and geographies.”

The 2017 European Private Equity Activity report covers activity on over 1,250 firms, directly verified by the fund managers via the European Data Cooperative. Working together with national private equity associations from across Europe to collate robust and comparable statistics, Invest Europe has developed the industry’s most comprehensive database. The EDC holds data from over 3,000 European private equity firms on 8,000 funds, 64,000 portfolio companies and 250,000 transactions since 2007.

CO-FOUNDER AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Saxo Payments Banking Circle, the global scale financial utility, has won its fourth award of 2018. Cementing its position as an innovative and ground-breaking payments provider, it has been named Best B2B Payments Company in the FinTech Breakthrough Awards. The FinTech Breakthrough Awards, now in their third year, recognise the top companies and products in the financial services and technology industry. In 2017, Banking Circle won the Best B2B Payments Platform award.

“Saxo Payments Banking Circle has demonstrated exponential growth over the past several years, and we congratulate them on their success” said James Johnson, Managing Director, FinTech Breakthrough. “Saxo Payments Banking Circle provides businesses with several powerful solutions that enable them to seamlessly pay suppliers and partners, creating an innovative cross border payments solution and empowering truly global trade. Congratulations to Saxo Payments Banking Circle on their 2018 FinTech Breakthrough Award.”

Anders la Cour, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer commented, “Whilst still relatively new, the FinTech Breakthrough Awards are already highly regarded and we are honoured and excited to have won another award this year. The win also recognises the significant impact we are having on the sector, recognising us as Best B2B Payments Company.”

“Banking Circle has moved from being a payments platform to leading the rise of the Financial Utility, handling non-core banking functions on behalf of banks and other Payments businesses such as PSPs and FX Payments businesses. 2018 has already started off with a raft of awards and initiatives, and there is more to come with new solutions and research set to be launched in the coming months.”

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SPORTS EVENTS 365 ENTERS THE CHINESE MARKET

WITH FIRST COOPERATION AGREEMENT WITH CTRIP, CHINA’S LEADING ONLINE TRAVEL WEBSITE, AND WITH OTHER TOURISM COMPANIES Sports Events 365, the international provider of tickets for sports and music events worldwide, through its Chinese brand PiaoYou365, has entered the Chinese market and is predicting it could become the company’s largest market, already in 2019. The Israel-based company, a leading force in the secondary ticket market for sporting events of global interest, has teamed up with CTRIP, China’s leading online travel company, to offer tickets on the site using Sports Events 365’s independent and self-owned, destination-based database and search engine.

Sports Events 365 has also initiated activity on a B2B basis with 20 Chinese tourism and sports tourism companies that will purchase tickets directly from Sports Events 365 on a permanent basis. The B2B activity is still at a very preliminary stage and has only started to tap the huge potential of the Chinese market, where there is tremendous interest in sporting events.

“We expect sales in China to reach $2 million to $3 million in 2019, which would make that market our largest,” predicts Sefi Donner, founder and CEO of Sports Events 365. He adds that “the Chinese are particularly interested in football in England, Spain and Italy as well as American sporting events, primarily basketball.”

Sports Events 365 will also develop its Chinese office by increasing the number of local employees who will be able to deal with the increased demand during convenient hours, thus supporting the Chinese language website

SEFI DONNER

FOUNDER AND CEO OF SPORTS EVENTS 365

CAREY OLSEN SUPPORT TECHEMY

INVESTMENT

CAPITAL ON ICO-FOCUSSED INVESTMENT FUND Carey Olsen has advised Techemy Capital Limited on the launch of HODL 1 L.P. – a closed-ended fund vehicle targeting investments into private-sale stage initial coin offerings. The fund, which has been authorised under the Jersey Private Fund regime, has appointed Techemy Capital Limited as investment adviser and will invest in cryptographic token deal flow.

The Techemy Group, based in New Zealand, owns and operates a range of businesses which assist in institutionalising this new asset class. Partner James Mulholland led the Carey Olsen team advising Techemy Capital and was assisted by senior associate Lauren Fletcher.

Mr Mulholland said: “Carey Olsen continues to see a flurry of activity in the emerging digital assets space and we are delighted to have been able to assist the Techemy Group on the launch of its own cryptocurrency-focused investment product. It was an interesting fund to advise on as we had to work across multiple time zones to get it done.

“The launch of HODL 1 LP is not only a vote of confidence in our firm’s fintech and digital assets capabilities, but also in Jersey’s position as a crypto friendly jurisdiction. Furthermore, the fact that the fund has been authorised as a Jersey Private Fund underlines the continuing popularity of that regime since its launch just over a year ago.”

The Jersey Private Fund regime provides for a streamlined fast-track regulatory authorisation process and is designed specifically for funds operating with up to 50 sophisticated investors.

Additionally, Sports Events 365 plans to establish a web hosting infrastructure in China that will expand the reach of the Chinese website to the local users.

The company participated for the first time at the annual China Outbound Travel and Tourism Market exhibition in Beijing, the leading foreign tourism event in China, which took place in mid-April.

About Sports Events 365 Established in 2006, Sports Events 365 sells tickets to sports and music events in 50 countries. Sports Events 365 has been selling tickets to customers from 150 countries to most of the 60,000 yearly events on its search engine. The company offers fully guaranteed tickets alongside personal and direct service seven days a week at competitive prices and selected technology tools for sharing content and online sales. Its B2B website, which is now active in eight languages, including Chinese, can be integrated into websites of Sports Events 365’s partners in the travel industry.

Sports Events 365 offers tickets for soccer matches in major European leagues and international championships for teams. The company also offers tickets for prominent events in tennis, European basketball, and rugby, alongside American basketball (NBA), football (NFL), ice hockey (NHL) and baseball (MLB) events. Sports Events 365 also allows ordering tickets to concerts of world-class musical artists such as the Elton John, U2 and Celine Dion.

As a true global and multi-lingual organization, Sports Events 365 operates websites in 20 languages in addition to a large number of jointly branded websites with travel companies.

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JAMES MULHOLLAND ISSUE 07 | 49 41

INVESTMENT

IIFA ANNOUNCES NEW REPORT OF HISTORICAL DATA ON WORLDWIDE OPEN-END FUNDS

The International Investment Funds Association is launching a publicly available statistical report – “World Historical Assets and Flows for Regulated Open-End Funds” – that will be updated quarterly. This report features a new data series that begins with first quarter 2008 and goes through fourth quarter 2017. In addition to the data compiled in the new release, the IIFA will continue to publish its quarterly update on worldwide regulated open-end fund assets and flows.

This is the first time any fund data provider has published for public use such a lengthy historical time series of data on regulated open-end funds. The new historical report contains data through fourth quarter 2017 on total net assets, total net sales, and number of funds from 48 jurisdictions, broken out by jurisdiction and published in euros, US dollars, and local currencies. IIFA believes this easily accessible historical information will be valuable for the work of industry researchers, analysts, and regulators.

IIFA Completing Time Series for Its Expanded Collection

For more than two decades, IIFA has been compiling worldwide open-end fund statistics released by EFAMA and other IIFA member associations. In 2015, the IIFA expanded the scope and quality of the data that constitute the statistics in its existing release to cover all “substantively regulated” open-end investment funds. To qualify as a substantively regulated fund, a fund must be constrained by some diversification limits, concentration limits, or leverage limits, with a view to offering a high level of investor protection. As a result of the expansion, IIFA added data on exchange-traded funds (ETFs), institutional funds, guaranteed/protected funds, and open-end real estate funds.

In 2015, revised historical data for the expanded regulated open-end fund collection was available beginning only with the first quarter of 2014. The new historical report presents a time series starting in 2008, reflecting the culmination of IIFA’s work since 2015 toward eliminating the breaks in the time series, and largely completing a longer, historical time series for the expanded collection. The data now available provide a more consistent data series from 2008 through 2015. The new report notes any remaining breaks.

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M&A WATCH

ALANTRA’S UK ADVISORY BUSINESS ANNOUNCES PROMOTIONS

Andy Currie, Managing Partner, commented: “Many congratulations to both Tom and Ali on their well-deserved promotions. As a business, our goal is to provide clients with the very best sector-focused advice on a global basis, and both Ali and Tom have made very tangible contributions to our industrials and healthcare teams in the UK. One of the most exciting features of our merger with Alantra is the great opportunity for our people, who will benefit from being part of a leading international business and working collaboratively with likeminded colleagues from across the globe. I have every confidence that Tom and Ali will enjoy continued success as Directors within the Alantra international partnership.”

Alantra today announced the promotion of two members of its UK advisory business (formerly Catalyst Corporate Finance): Tom Cowap and Ali Robertson have both been promoted to Director.

Tom Cowap joined Catalyst in 2013 and is a key member of the Healthcare team where he focuses on Pharma, Life Sciences and Pharma Services. He has advised on significant deals in this sector including the acquisition of Concept Life Sciences, as well as the sales of CP Electronics and Interfloor and private equity transactions at Make it Cheaper and XLN Business Services. He is also one of the authors of the annual Alantra Pharma Fast 50.

Ali Robertson joined the Industrials team in 2013 where he focuses on Chemicals and Coatings, and more recently on the Specialty Materials and Marine sectors. Key deals on which he has advised include the sales of Expert Tooling, Raphael Healthcare, ATG and Morrells, as well as the buy-out of Westleigh Homes. Ali is also one of the authors of Alantra’s annual Chemical & Coatings Fast 25 ranking.

These promotions come shortly after Catalyst Corporate Finance rebranded as Alantra, with its partners leading Alantra’s UK advisory business. Catalyst announced its merger with Alantra, the global investment banking and asset management firm, in October 2017 with the goal of creating a leading global advisory business in the mid-market.

During the last six months, Alantra’s advisory teams have completed over 70 deals for a total value of more than £4.5bn, acting on behalf of private company shareholders, global corporations, private equity funds and other financial institutions,

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ANDY CURRIE MANAGING PARTNER ISSUE 07 | 53

M&A WATCH

YFM EQUITY PARTNERS SUPPORTS £3M INVESTMENT INTO ARCUS, AN INNOVATIVE CLOUD-BASED SOFTWARE BUSINESS THAT SERVES LOCAL AND NATIONAL PUBLIC SECTOR ORGANISATIONS

Funds advised and managed by YFM Equity Partners, the specialist private equity fund manager have backed a £3m investment into Arcus Global Limited, a provider of cloud-based software solutions to local and national public sector organisations. YFM’s investment comes from its two advised VCTs, British Smaller Companies VCT plc and British Smaller Companies VCT2 plc.

Founded in 2009 by Denis Kaminskiy (CEO) and Lars Malmqvist (CTO), Arcus has experienced rapid growth as a result of a shift towards cloud-based solutions for software and infrastructure requirements. Arcus has developed a proprietary Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform that enables Local Authorities and other Public Sector organisations to transform end to end service delivery in areas such as Digital Transactions, Planning, Building Control, Regulatory Services and Waste Management. Arcus is also a specialist Public Sector Advanced Consulting Partner for Amazon Web Services and provides unique cloud hosting and managed services to a number of public sector bodies, using their expertise to deliver solutions that are resilient, secure, and cost effective. In the public sector space, the company is using the latest AWS services such as AI and Alexa Skills.

Arcus is based in Cambridge, where it employs over 100 staff, and expects to generate revenue in excess of £13m this year. Their client base includes over 30 UK Local Authorities such as Eastleigh Borough Council, Mid-Sussex District Council and Aylesbury Vale District Council. The infrastructure team serves over 100 Public and Private Sector clients, including Central Government, Universities and large businesses. YFM’s funds will be used to support the continued growth of the business, building resource in technology development, sales and customer services. Together, this will enable Arcus to further expand its range of software solutions to help the public sector to increase its use of digital technologies and transform services.

Charlie Robinson and Andy Thomas led the investment for YFM. Charlie Robinson commented: “Denis and his team have done a fantastic job in building the company and we are delighted to be working with Arcus to support their continued growth over the coming years. They have developed an enviable reputation for their innovative approach and we believe their solutions will fulfil an important role in helping public sector organisations drive efficiencies and to adapt to the changing digital landscape””

Denis Kaminskiy, co-founder of Arcus, added: “I am incredibly pleased do have raised this growth investment from YFM. We ran a thorough and competitive process, and they have been a joy to work with so far. Of course, our exciting journey is just beginning, and I am looking forward to YFM’s expertise, advice and support. Our customers desperately need help, and this funding will allow us to improve and accelerate every part of our business.”

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M&A WATCH

WAVEMAKER ANNOUNCES RABE IYER AS MENA CEO

About Rabe Iyer

Rabe’s career spans 25+ years in media, advertising and communication. Before joining Motivator in 2012, Rabe was at Reliance Broadcast Network where he helped launch live, activation, outdoor and digital businesses, besides building strong integration models to unlock the value of Reliance media assets. Prior to that he worked nine years with Publicis Group Media, among others leading the expansion of the group’s agencies in Vietnam. Rabe has worked with brands like Nestle, P&G, Hyundai, Honda Cars, Yamaha, Coca Cola Company, Bristol Mayer Squibb, Visa, Sara Lee, L’Oréal, Apple, Nokia and Huawei. Under Rabe’s leadership, Motivator became the fastest growing agency and ranked among India’s Top 10 quality agencies, according to RECMA.

About Wavemaker

Founded July 2017, Wavemaker is a billion dollar-revenue media, content and technology agency, obsessed with the customer’s purchase journey. We invented WM Momentum, the world’s most comprehensive study into how people make purchase decisions and have conducted over 350,000 surveys in 35 markets and across more than 70 categories. Our 8,500 people in 90 countries are united through our focus on understanding, accelerating and optimizing purchase journeys; making them more satisfying for consumers and more effective for our clients. We are a part of GroupM, WPP’s global media investment management company.

Wavemaker, the new media, content and technology agency, has appointed Rabinder Thirumurthy, also known as Rabe Iyer, as CEO for Wavemaker MENA. The announcement was made by Ajit Varghese, Wavemaker’s Global President of Market Development.

Rabe joins from a position as Managing Director of GroupM India media agency Motivator, based in Delhi. He is relocating to Dubai to officially join Wavemaker on June 10th. Ajit Varghese commented: “I’ve known Rabe since he joined Motivator and I’ve always been impressed by his commitment to excellence. He’s a proven leader with strong business acumen and I’m sure that he, together with our fantastic leadership team across the region, is perfectly positioned to make Wavemaker MENA a formidable future-facing agency.”

Filip Jabbour, CEO of GroupM MENA, added, “Rabe is a great plus for Wavemaker; he has the skill, the vision and the deep understanding of our industry to lead and grow our business in the region.”

Rabe Iyer said, “Wavemaker’s ambition, it’s obsession with the purchase journey and desire to connect and scale its capabilities, is exciting. I believe that MENA has a large potential for growth and I look forward to working with the talented team here to deliver on the agency’s ambition across the region.”

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RABINDER THIRUMURTHY CEO OF WAVEMAKER ISSUE 07 | 57

M&A WATCH

OPTIMISM DOES NOT PAY OOF ON THE OPTION TRADING FLOOR Optimism may be a helpful attitude in many situations in life, but not on the option trading floor as a new research paper by Swiss Finance Institute Professor Paul Schneider from the Università della Svizzera Italiana reveals.

He connects subjective views such as optimism and pessimism with prices and trading strategies in the options market. He finds pessimists to be the most successful, with optimists being their unfortunate counterparties. Perhaps surprisingly, the pessimist’s success is based upon his or her role as insurance vendor.

Swiss Finance Institute Professor Paul Schneider from the Università della Svizzera Italiana developed a framework in which he takes quoted bid–ask spreads in the liquid S&P 500 options market as input and investigates how different subjective views imply risk preferences, and consequently trading strategies. In his model, the options market is populated by optimists, pessimists, and pragmatists.

The optimist believes in the exceptional upside potential of the market, while the pessimist believes disaster is highly likely; the pragmatist believes that the market does not quote a certain region of option strikes by accident and hence considers it the most informative. Schneider finds that the three types of agents use a surprisingly small variety of strategies. With few exceptions, pessimists short both the S&P 500 itself and variance swaps, with the optimists as their counterparty.

The pragmatists fill in the trading gaps opportunistically. This marketclearing allocation in variance comes as a surprise: the generally accepted interpretation of the negative variance premium in the S&P 500 market is as an insurance premium against market crashes.

To appreciate the background to these unexpected trading allocations, one ought to discard the notion that pessimists are necessarily more downside risk averse than optimists. Likewise, optimists are not necessarily more risk loving. Analogies are easy to find. Pessimists may pack their bathing suits and beach towels despite their expecting bad weather. In contrast, optimists decide to leave them at home, because they simply do not want to be bothered by the extra weight, despite their strong expectations of a sunny day.

Downside risk aversion is the most prominently and robustly observed trait of human decision-making, but there is a great variation in its strength that is not necessarily connected to expectations. Positive thinking, it is clear, does not always pay off. On the option trading floor, it seems, optimism all by itself is rather unhelpful.

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PAUL SCHNEIDER

SWISS FINANCE INSTITUTE PROFESSOR

M&A WATCH

MANAGING OPERATIONAL RESILIENCE AND SAFEGUARDING DATA ARE CORE TO SUSTAINABLE DIGITAL FINANCIAL SERVICES

The speed and scale of digital transformation within the financial services industry is contributing to the emergence of new non-financial risks, according to a new report published today. Sustainable Financial Services in the Digital Age, a joint report from UK Finance and Parker Fitzgerald, comes only days ahead of the introduction of the General Data Privacy Regulation and highlights the need for firms to consider their exposure to risk and operational resilience in today’s digital age.

The report outlines how adopting new technologies, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, cloud computing and distributed ledger technology, will allow the financial services sector to develop new services and platforms to significantly reduce operational costs. Those organisations committed to full-scale transformation will be best placed to deliver the greatest benefits to customers and shareholders. However, a failure to address emerging risks, as well as internal risk management processes, could lead to operational, as well as systemic, threats across the sector. At the core of sustainable digital finance is the management of operational risk and safeguarding of data, which are particularly poignant given the implementation of GDPR this week. For example, the growth of digital outsourcing via the cloud will allow companies to uncover new sources of efficiency, but this creates cyber vulnerabilities and emerging risks further ingrained within the business supply chain.

IT’S OK TALK ABOUT MONEY

AS OUR ‘APP-ETITE’ TO CHAT GROWS

OLIVIER BREITTMAYER

BENOIT VAUCHY

CEO OF EXCLUSIVE GROUP

PARTNER AT PERMIRA

It may be taboo to talk about money with friends and family but when it comes to your bank it’s a different matter, with today’s social media savvy consumer taking advantage of more banking webchat services than ever before, according to the latest research from UK Finance.

The Way We Bank Now report, sponsored by EY, reveals that the popularity of services such as Twitter, Facebook messenger and WhatsApp, is encouraging banks to invest in similarly fast and convenient webchat services with customers embracing online support – major banks had over 5.5 million webchats with customers in 2017, the equivalent of 622 per hour. Helping customers wherever they are, be it via video banking or call technology, tablet computers or online mortgage application services alongside pop-up, micro and mobile branches, is a sentiment increasingly adopted by the banking industry as it seeks to respond to customer demand for accessibility 24/7. In coming years video banking and voice activation will become even more prominent.

The report calls on the industry to collaborate with technology suppliers as well as domestic and cross-border regulators to create a risk framework that embraces the benefits of digital transformation with the following recommendations: • Placing the safeguarding of data at the core of sustainable digital finance.

• Closing the gap between incumbents’ digital aspirations and the reality of legacy IT estates.

• Reviewing the integrity of fintech ‘component solutions’ being integrated into the supply chain.

Overall in recent years digital innovation has transformed the way we manage our money – in 2017 customers logged into apps over 5.5 billion times, a 13 per cent increase since 2016 – and increasingly customers are utilising new technologies to talk to experts outside conventional bank branch hours rather than taking time out of their working day.

Commenting on the report, Dan Crisp, Director of Technology & Digital at UK Finance, said: “Given today’s ever-increasing threat of cyber-attacks and data protection violations, it’s vital that the financial services sector prioritises operational resilience – just having a firewall simply doesn’t cut it. The speed and scale of digital transformation makes it essential for new technologies to be integrated safely within existing operating models while minimising risk.

This isn’t a zero-sum game; these risks are not isolated to specific organisations and financial services firms can harness innovation while simultaneously tackling these new challenges, through the analysis of operating models and building new risk frameworks. The industry is working hard to develop technology and water-tight risk programmes, but only collaboration with policymakers and regulators, both domestic and cross-border, will facilitate success.”

Stephen Jones, Chief Executive, UK Finance said: “Technology is changing the way we communicate, work and shop and, as a result, the way we choose to manage our money. The industry has responded to this seismic social change, which is very much led by customers looking to make the most of digital innovation for convenience. The assumption that British consumers shy away from talking about money looks to be consigned to the last century, as webchats and video banking prove increasingly popular. And with over 22 million British customers having downloaded banking apps, this trend is not going away. It doesn’t stop there however. Banks are looking at analytics, the internet of things (IoT), virtual assistants and other technologies as customers’ desire for convenience drives a shift towards an increasingly digital world. Over the next few years Open Banking and artificial intelligence will change the relationship we have, not only with our banks but also how we fundamentally access and utilise financial products and services.”

Matthew Hayday, Leading Partner, Global Technology Services at Parker Fitzgerald comments: “Digital transformation is both inevitable and necessary for the financial industry. A forward-looking agenda should highlight its impact on the industry’s risk landscape.To safeguard their organisations through the digital transformation journey, financial firms need to close the gap between their digital aspirations and the reality of their legacy IT estates. Key activities include reducing reliance on legacy systems, de-cluttering redundant systems, and using analytics to predict and quantify the impact of non-financial risks. Of particular importance to financial firms is understanding how future regulations can affect their digital transformation strategies, how key technologies can be safely adopted within their operating models, and how their risk frameworks can be adapted to take account of new risks and threat vectors arising from cyber and technology risk, as well as data privacy and protection considerations amplified by PSD2 and GDPR.” ISSUE 07 | 60

Dan Cooper, UK Banking & Capital Markets Leader, EY said: “Digital innovation is transforming how we engage with our banks - we’re now able to make payments and communicate with our bank at times which suit us through increasingly sophisticated apps and webchat services. Given how busy people’s lives are nowadays, this is proving to be a real game changer. What’s great to see is that people of all ages are taking advantage of these latest innovations. Perhaps unsurprisingly, millennials are currently the biggest adopters, but the stereotype that tech only appeals to the younger generations is being proven to be just not true anymore, with almost half (49%) of 65 year olds now using online banking. The pace of change is only set to quicken over the next few years as the likes of Artificial Intelligence and Open Banking bed in, which if implemented well, will truly revolutionise the way the British public banks once more.”

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M&A WATCH

In 2017, Home Credit had raised nearly INR 870 million (Rs 87 crore) through two 2-wheeler loan securitization transactions. In a first ever deal of its kind, the company also raised INR 1.53 billion (Rs 153 crore) through a consumer durables loan securitization in November last year.

Since its launch in India in 2012, Home Credit India has been consistently expanding operations with a customer base of over 6 million as of date. The company had a customer base of nearly 2 million in 2016, driven by panIndia expansion across major markets, a range of diversified and innovative products backed by superior customer experience. In 2017 alone Home Credit added another 3.5 million customers, further consolidating its position as a leading consumer finance provider.

Home Credit Group is developing its footprint in Asia’s fast-growing and high-potential markets and in the U.S., while maintaining its role as a market leader in Central and Eastern Europe and CIS. Its distinctive business model of providing consumer finance products which are easily accessible even at the lower end of the economic scale is a formula which has been successfully rolled out in China, India and South East Asia. Home Credit Group has developed both bricks-and-mortar and online distribution that makes it very attractive to manufacturers and retailers who are seeking a consumer finance partner. This in turn supports the rapid development of Home Credit’s loan portfolio. In 2017, Home Credit delivered strong new loan volumes across APAC, including 216% growth in India, 180% growth in Indonesia and a 220% increase in the Philippines.

HOME CREDIT INDIA RAISES INR 6 BILLION IN FUNDING IN JAN-MAR TO SUPPORT BUSINESS GROWTH

ANIRBAN MAJUMDER CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER AT HOME CREDIT INDIA

Home Credit India Finance Pvt. Ltd., one of India’s fastest growing non-banking finance company, today announced that it has raised over INR 6 billion (Rs 600 crore) through a mix of innovative securitization transactions, terms loans, and non-convertible debenture issue during January – Mar 2018.

The funds will be primarily utilized for supporting the rapid growth of business and expanding operations across India.

Of the total amount raised, nearly INR 2.8 billion (Rs 280 crore) has been raised through securitization of consumer durables and cross-sell personal loans. The balance financing of INR 3.2 billion (Rs 320 crore) has been raised through multiple term loans and a NCD. While the securitization issues were subscribed by investors like DCB Bank and Hinduja Leyland Finance Limited, term loans were raised from a clutch of leading financial institutions such as IFMR Capital, Tata Capital, and JM Financial.

The tenor of these transactions ranges from 5 months to 3 years. With this round of funding, Home Credit India plans to augment its loan book, invest in technology infrastructure, and develop innovative financing products that broadens financial inclusion and positions the company as a global fintech player.

Speaking on the fund raising, Anirban Majumder, Chief Financial Officer, Home Credit India, “For Home Credit, India is a strategically important market. To support the growth of our business in the medium term, we will continue to diversify our funding base in terms of innovative financing instruments and maturity, and to attract flexible and stable funding sources based on long-term, mutually beneficial relationships with investors. The funding will further enable us to make our loans accessible to underserved segments of population, build their credit history, and promote responsible lending.”

“Hinduja Leyland is delighted to be associated with Home Credit India and we hope our financing for the consumer durables loan securitization is the beginning of a long and mutually beneficial business relationship,” said Mr. Sachin Pillai, CEO, Hinduja Leyland Finance.

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M&A WATCH

THE LANG CAT SENSES

EARLY SIGNS OF END OF PENSION TRANSFER BOOM Figures in the Q1 2018 Platform Market Scorecard (PMS) from the lang cat, the leading financial services consultancy, suggest we may be seeing the end of the boom in pension transfers.

The PMS highlights that pension gross inflows to platforms are 16% down on Q4 2017 compared to an overall drop of 5% in total sales across all investment wrappers.

Whilst maintaining a watching brief to ensure that this quarter was not just a blip, the lang cat believes the combination of professional indemnity issues for advisers, a lack of clear direction from the regulator, platforms taking stock about how compliantly they can compete for business and transfer multiples dropping have all contributed to a slowdown in sales levels.

In pure asset terms, the platform market continues to be buoyant, despite ongoing regulatory and market volatility challenges. Total platform assets under management increased 7.1% year on year (Q1 2018 VS q1 2017) to £494 billion with a healthy 12% growth in the advised segment to £371 billion over the same period.

Elsewhere, the PMS also highlights the changing face of platform selection with PROD (Product Intervention and Product Governance Sourcebook) now on the scene.

Terry Huddart, market analysis manager at the lang cat, said: “Despite well documented re-platforming issues, new business market share has not changed significantly in the quarter even in the face of recurring issues caused for advisory businesses and consequent strain on client relationships.

“This is partly to do with how difficult it is to move existing clients to a different platform. However, PROD is the new kid on the block that brings both challenges and opportunities for advisers and providers alike. There is now more onus on advisers to evidence platform selection by client segment and PROD is rules rather than guidance.

“We believe there is opportunity to use the legislation to help build a more defined client solutions and for providers to make it really clear who their propositions are designed for. It is usually much more realistic for firms to appoint a strategic platform panel than assess each client on price against each platform. Although most do operate in that way, many advisers will still find client justification onerous. PROD therefore has the potential to help underpin strategic panel selection.

“We don’t think it’s impossible to still have a single platform for all clients, but it is becoming more difficult”.

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M&A WATCH

CFOs OPTIMISTIC ON U.S. ECONOMY SHOULD FACTOR PROTECTIONISM INTO FORECASTS

Yet companies might also want to consider the potential threats to their rosy expectations. “The improved short-term economic outlook appears to be prompting CFOs to be overwhelmingly optimistic. At the same time, many CFOs doing business in the U.S. have never experienced an economic downturn, and the world is more uncertain due to a number of recent geopolitical events,” said George Quinn, Group Chief Financial Officer at Zurich. “This increases the importance of being truly prepared for the longer-term potential negative impact of geopolitical events.”

He believes that the key for businesses will be to develop a more strategic approach to understanding geopolitical change, and to integrate geopolitics into their planning. “This will minimize the risk that you become a victim and increase your ability to take full advantage of opportunities that will also emerge,” Mr. Quinn added.

Confidence high worldwide, strongest in U.S.

Most bullish among CFOs surveyed were those in North America, where 75% expect the business environment in the next three years to improve. At 71%, European CFOs were nearly as optimistic, while those in Asia Pacific and South America, at 68% and 65% respectively, were the least optimistic. Despite trade tension between the U.S. and China, and a planned renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), 62% of Asia Pacific CFOs and 60% of North American CFOs said that the U.S. business climate was getting better for foreign businesses compared with to six months earlier. In Europe, slightly less than half of CFOs surveyed shared this view.

Concerns about potential policy restrictions Zurich Insurance Group – Chief financial officers believe the U.S. presents a good investment case, but businesses need to think strategically when it comes to taking recent global developments into account, including a rise in protectionism anticipated by many, according to a new report published today by Zurich Insurance Group, EY and the Atlantic Council.

Ten years into the global economic recovery, 61% of CFOs surveyed felt confident or extremely confident about investing in the U.S., while 71% expected continued improvement in the U.S. business environment over the next three years.

While growth expectations are high, the survey findings also indicated that CFOs are most concerned about classic protectionist threats. Potential restrictions to the flow of goods, capital and people would weigh on growth. A majority of CFOs, 68% surveyed, believe U.S. protectionism will increase in the next three years, with 46% indicating this would have a negative impact on investments. Nearly two-thirds expect increased U.S. scrutiny of cross-border mergers and acquisitions, and two-thirds expect more restrictive immigration policies in the U.S. Such policies would negatively influence investment, according to 42% of CFOs surveyed.

Manage geopolitics or be managed by them

To help companies and their CFOs prepare for future uncertainties, the report explored three different geopolitical scenarios and the impact each might have on the U.S. economy: Isolationism, Atlanticism and Internationalism. Companies would need to take into account potentially significant impacts on their business, including trade restrictions. In the most extreme cases, the difference could be USD 2 trillion in cumulative U.S. GDP and 1.7 million in U.S. jobs over the next five years.

Geopolitical trends and shocks can be disruptive. They can also create opportunities. Given the potential impact, and despite the uncertainty, businesses must act to dissipate a potential storm on their doorsteps and reap the benefits for their customers, shareholders and employees. Both the near-term and longer-term impacts of U.S. tax reform legislation and NAFTA renegotiations on businesses have yet to be fully taken into account. In the current environment of transformation, policy shifts will likely continue to have a major influence on how economies develop and to what extent businesses can prosper.

Findings published in the report, ‘Borders vs Barriers: Navigating uncertainty in the U.S. business environment,’ were in particular drawn from a study of close to 500 CFOs from 30 countries carried out in February and March 2018. A positive economic outlook, deregulation and the passage of landmark tax reform legislation in the U.S. contributed to the optimism.

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SECTOR WATCH: TECHNOLOGY

CLARANET ACQUIRES UNION SOLUTIONS enhancing hosting and cloud expertise and reach in retail, legal and financial sectors

Leading managed IT services provider Claranet has today announced the acquisition of UK-based infrastructure and cloud specialist Union Solutions. In keeping with the company’s emphasis on strategic growth, the move enables Claranet to expand its customer base and service capabilities, with Union representing the latest in a string of technology businesses to be added to the Claranet Group in recent years.

Operating out of office locations in Surrey and Kent, Union employs around 30 staff and has an annual turnover of £10m. It specialises in a range of IT infrastructure and managed service offerings, including infrastructure design, hosting, transition, and migration, with a strong emphasis on high-performing data management and security for large businesses. Union supports both large on-premise managed solutions, as well as managed solutions on Microsoft Azure Cloud. The founders of Union are staying with the business and will be working to grow Claranet’s hosting services for years to come.

Michel Robert, Managing Director at Claranet UK, said: “Claranet has acquired Union Solutions toenhance its hosting design, transition, and migration capabilities for large-scale on-premise solutions as well as additional strong Azure skills and offerings. Union has a depth of experience and capability in the design and implementation of mission critical infrastructure, with emphasis on data storage and security. It has developed strong, long-term customer relationships in the legal, financial services, and retail verticals which will further enhance our capabilities in these important sectors. “Union’s passion for excellence and desire to grow meant it was an ideal fit as part of our ongoing focus on rapid expansion, so we’re eagerly anticipating adding the company’s unique capabilities to our own, and using this new expertise to further enhance our market offering.”

Jason Rabbetts, Founder and Director at Union Solutions added: “We are delighted that we have now become part of the Claranet group. Union’s data management services, hyper converged platform skills, and Azure specialism – now coupled with Claranet’s public cloud and private cloud capabilities – brings an incredibly powerful hybrid transformation proposition to our customers and the general market. In today’s rapidly changing hybrid multi-cloud world, specialism in a wide spectrum of skills is essential, and that is what makes this particular union so relevant and exciting.”

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SECTOR WATCH: TECHNOLOGY

IMPROVED ACCURACY IN WATER FLOW

MEASUREMENT WITH TEMPERATURE-STABLE ULTRASONIC FLOW SENSORS The accurate measurement of water flow in domestic metering or industrial applications can be affected by variations in ultrasonic sensing parameters over temperature. An improved 2MHz ultrasonic flow sensor (09265001) developed by CeramTec delivers stable, consistent measurements by reducing zero flow offset to improve the accuracy of ultrasonic meters for utilities measurement from 0oC to 130oC. The challenge in development of ultrasonic flow sensors for accurate ultrasonic meters is stabilising zero flow offset over the temperature range without a stable zero flow measurement, meters will present inaccurate readings.

This nonreciprocity between the ultrasonic flow sensors can vary non-linearly over the operating temperature range reducing efficacy of the algorithmic calibration profile, reducing dynamic range and measurements accuracy in ultrasonic meters. CeramTec’s world leading piezo ceramic expertise, combined with transducers design knowledge has led to the release of an improved 2MHz water coupled transducers (09265-001). The variation in zero-flow offset over temperature has been reduced to values as low as 30ps which improves measurement accuracy and increases dynamic range. These sensors have been used to take accurate measurements below 5 litres per hour for domestic applications, over a full temperature range.

The improved ultrasonic sensors also offer a best in class sensitivity and bandwidth. Sensitivity as high as -8dB over a 150mm water filled path, and a bandwidth of 400kHz at -3dB. CeramTec’s bespoke design capability allows for customisation of ultrasonic transducers for use in extreme environments tailored to our customer’s specification.

Oksana Jaroszak, Transducer Engineer at CeramTec UK, explains: “Our improved 2MHz sensors offer ultrasonic water meter providers to measure more accurately over a wider dynamic range. Our commitment to improving our customer’s products and world-wide renowned ultrasonic knowhow have enabled us to produce more effective, higher quality ultrasonic sensors for the ultrasonic utilities flow measurement market.”

MasterCARD LAUNCHES ACCELERATE TO CONTINUE TO UNLEASH THE POTENTIAL OF FINTECHS

MasterCard today announces the creation of Accelerate, a new initiative to drive growth at scale for the fast-evolving FinTech industry, reflecting the company’s ongoing commitment to this sector. The initiative is designed to support the ambitions of players in the FinTech sector through tailored support arrangements including access to insight, tools, technology and investment to support innovation. Designed to operate alongside the successful Start Path programme, Accelerate broadens and deepens our engagement with the payment FinTech community including the next generation of digital banks.

Tools include dedicated Mastercard licensing specialists to support market expansion, in-market access to account expertise to fast track growth, and unparalleled ability to connect to comprehensive processing assets. Resources will include Mastercard Advisors for in-market execution support, data insights and analytics. The program also provides market-based resources for related strategic investing and accommodative early-stage collateral requirements.

“Creating this initiative is the next step in our longterm focus on being partner of choice for FinTech companies around the world” commented Ann Cairns, Vice Chairman, Mastercard. “Globally, the FinTech community is one of the most vibrant and fast-paced, and Mastercard is committed to help these fast growing businesses unleash their full potential.

With extensive experience in supporting growth of the financial services industry, Mastercard is uniquely positioned to provide the platform which can propel FinTech businesses along increasingly ambitious growth paths.”

Mastercard has been committed to FinTech for many years, fostering partnerships with pioneers who have grown into global brands. Mastercard currently supports over 30 emerging and established digital banks in Europe alone. Mastercard research shows unequivocally that consumers are engaging with digital banking with greater frequency, and with greater expectation. The market opportunity for ambitious digital banking businesses and FinTechs is clear and Mastercard is prepared to help them seize it.

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SECTOR WATCH: TECHNOLOGY

UCL TECHNOLOGY FUND AND UK INNOVATION & SCIENCE SEED FUND INVEST IN CELL THERAPY COMPANY GLIALIGN

The UCL Technology Fund, UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund (UKI2S), alongside support from Innovate UK, have invested in UCL spinout company Glialign Ltd, which is developing a novel cell therapy for peripheral nerve repair.

Hundreds of thousands of people every year are affected by severe peripheral nerve damage, resulting in paralysis and loss of sensation, often accompanied by chronic pain. Current therapies are successful in fewer than half of cases and often require grafting of a nerve from another part of the body.

Dr James Phillips, UCL School of Pharmacy, and his team at the UCL Centre for Nerve Engineering, have developed an allogeneic (‘off-the-shelf’) cell therapy for the repair of peripheral nerve injury called Engineered Neural Tissue (‘EngNT’). EngNT will provide a living nerve-growth guide that mimics nerve structure, and has the potential to enable both neural regeneration and functional recovery.

Dr Phillips explains that: “By controlling the natural ability of cells to organise themselves within soft materials we are able to generate living artificial tissues that can be used to support and guide nerve regeneration. Glialign uses EngNT made with cells developed in collaboration with ReNeuron that are suitable as an off-the-shelf therapy for the immediate treatment of patients with nerve injuries. This overcomes the limitations of nerve grafting where healthy nerves need to be destroyed, and also reduces the delay and variability that would be associated with using a patient’s own stem cells.”

Glialign CEO, John Sinden commented: “A key translational milestone was achieved following the completion of a collaborative grant with ReNeuron and TAP Biosystems (now Sartorious Stedim Biotech), bringing together EngNT technology with clinically validated neural stem cells from ReNeuron and manufacturing technologies from TAP. Early validation of this technology combination has recently been published. The award of an Innovate UK Investment Accelerator grant will demonstrate the clinical potential of EngNT and its commercial viability.”

UCLTF’s unique Proof of Concept funding model has supported key product development steps, with the additional funding from UKI2S and from Innovate UK, as part of its ‘Investment Accelerator Pilot’, enabling crucial in vivo experiments to demonstrate the efficacy of the improved construct. Success on these studies will be a key step towards bringing this innovative cell therapy to the clinic.

UKI2S Investment Director Oliver Sexton commented: “Glialign’s technology addresses a major unmet patient need and may help patients with peripheral nerve damage recover. UKI2S’ investment and Innovate UK’s support allows GliAlign to derisk the technology, gathering data to support product approval and hastening its availability.”

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SECTOR WATCH: ENERGY

COMPLEXITY IS CHALLENGING AND SLOWING DOWN THE CORPORATE RENEWABLE ENERGY TRANSITION

act renewable, an independent specialist renewable energy consultant, has launched with the express aim of helping corporations to cut through market complexity and the multiple options available to them, to help drive forward their renewable energy ambitions.

The role of corporations is central to the renewable energy transition and helping to address climate change. But faced with many options and considerations, from multiple providers, the ‘opportunity’ quickly becomes seen as a ‘challenge’ and progress slowed.

Rasmus Nedergaard, Managing Director of act renewable, explains: “While many corporations recognise the moral and business case for renewable energy, a lack of internal expertise makes the transition process seem particularly complex. This is compounded by the numerous options available. The net result is that progress is slowed and the benefits from a transition to renewable energy go unrealised.”

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The starting point is to recognize that all corporations are different and have different values, business models and priorities.

Rasmus continues: “Independent advisory firms do not start with a shortlist of options. We start with the corporation and what it wants to achieve. We then progress along a logical path that considers Business Case, Renewable Technologies and Financing. And, at each step, can consider whole-market options to arrive at the best possible solution.

“We form a crucial bridge between the corporation and the renewable energy market. The potential for corporations to be the main global driving force in the renewable energy transition is well recognised, but for this to happen it is crucial they have access to advice and guidance that can cut through the complexity and multiple options available to them.”

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SECTOR WATCH: ENERGY

MORE GUIDANCE AND SUPPORT NEEDED FROM GOVERNMENT IF ELECTRIC VEHICLE CROSSOVER TARGET IS TO BE ACHIEVED Further to recent speculation that Michael Gove will also include the ban of the sale of new hybrid cars, as well as petrol and diesel by 2040, automotive experts at leading real estate services company, Colliers International, say this is just going create even more confusion and uncertainty in the marketplace, with buyer confidence being driven down unnecessarily.

John Roberts, Head of Automotive and Roadside at Colliers commented: “Recent legislation from the UK government has allocated funding to support local authorities in creating the necessary electric charging infrastructure which is welcome.

Yet the market is still in its infancy and some of these initiatives are perhaps causing some consumer confusion. The Government’s plans are clearly welcomed and are extremely important for the advancement of the sector, however diesel and petrol engines are not being phased out completely until 2040, so there’s still more than 20-years before the changes come into effect. There is still a lot of work to do to prepare the infrastructure required to cater for the future of the sector.”

In Colliers International’s inaugural Automotive Viewpoint, John Roberts, Head of Automotive and Roadside, explains a combined undersupply of charging points both at home and ‘on the move’ alongside apprehension over lengthy charging times is contributing to a lack of buyer confidence and ‘range anxiety’ from existing and potential EV owners.

Meanwhile, concerns over the ability of the current UK energy supply to meet future demand and the lack of guidance for landlords and developers for integrating charging points in to commercial premises is causing confusion.

John explains: “Currently, there are over 5,000 locations in the UK that have a public charging point installed and there are over 9,000 devices at these locations, which provide 15,000 connectors. Although these statistics are impressive, the number of connectors and devices will need to at least quadruple in the short term to meet the demand from the increasing sales of EVs. Charging at home is fine if you have off-street parking. Of course, many of us don’t. Some local authorities and London Boroughs are selectively placing charging points in lamp posts. This is a great initiative, but what happens when every vehicle is electric? We already see cables stretched for 20 metres along the pavement which is both a safety risk and, quite frankly, open to wanton vandalism. For residential developers of apartments, should there be a requirement that charging points are fitted, or can be readily retro-fitted, to every parking space? This is something else which will need to be taken into consideration.”

As charging times are improving, the need for higher levels of electricity is also required, however some locations and properties are not able to provide the required capacities. Colliers’ research highlights ‘range anxiety’ - the concern held by potential EV owners that the vehicle could run out of power before reaching their desired destination - as a key deterrent to EV ownership - John adds that: “Further infrastructure will need to be built and created, particularly at existing petrol filling stations and arterial route locations to serve any EV user travelling modest distances. Oil companies, such as Shell and BP, have already started to install and open charging points within their petrol stations to meet the growing EV demand.”

JOHN ROBERTS

HEAD OF AUTOMOTIVE AND ROADSIDE AT COLLIERS

OTHER KEY RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: - IN IN 2016, NEW REGISTERED VEHICLES WITHIN THE UK REACHED AN ALL-TIME HIGH OF JUST UNDER 2.7MILLION; A 39% INCREASE ON THE POST GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS LOW OF 1.94MILLION IN 2011.

- 2017 SAW A SLIGHT REDUCTION IN NEW VEHICLES REGISTERED, WITH A DECREASE IN SALES OF 5.7%. HOWEVER, THIS WAS STILL THE THIRD LARGEST NUMBER IN THE LAST DECADE, WITH OVER 2.5 MILLION NEW VEHICLES SOLD. - THE SOCIETY OF MOTOR MANUFACTURERS & TRADERS (SMMT) PREDICTS AN ANNUAL DECREASE IN NEW CAR REGISTRATIONS OF -5.6% IN 2018, TO 2.39 MILLION. - FROM JANUARY TO MARCH 2018, NEW CAR SALES WERE DOWN BY 12.4%, PERHAPS INFLUENCED BY GOVERNMENT POLICY RELATING TO DIESEL VEHICLES.

“The addition of charging points at filling stations in town and city car parks, shopping centres, retail parks, supermarkets and new public ‘charging parks’ has potential implications for landlords and developers in terms of potential space required.

Vehicles filling with petrol or diesel take a matter of minutes. Currently, EV charging, even with superchargers, can take up to 40 minutes (80% re-charge)” John Roberts adds: “The UK Government needs to fully support both the property and petrol retailing sectors to make the conversion to EVs a realistic and achievable goal. Investment in the charging infrastructure is one thing, but beyond that, ensuring that UK energy supply meets the future surge in demand is another. There is certainly a long way to go.”

Mark Charlton, Head of UK Research & Forecasting at Colliers International comments: “The 2016 figure was not only the fifth consecutive year of growth but it was also a record high due to a wide choice of new car models and affordable finance deals available. There was a slight decrease in 2017, which has been accelerated by the recent legislation to ban the sale of all new petrol and diesel vehicles. This has caused confusion in the marketplace around the impact of conventional diesel and petrol combustion engines, which has driven down buyer confidence, despite these changes not actually taking full effect until 2040.”

Mark Charlton, adds: “While you might expect the manufacturer covenant to generate a lower yield, 4 out of 5 of the top deals are for sites with strong dealership covenants, with the keenest yield (3.78%) being for a prime London location. Having said that, the yield spread for dealer transactions is much wider than for manufacturers, reflecting the potential differential in financial strength.”

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SECTOR WATCH: PHARMA

The Alantra Pharma Fast 50 includes analysis of businesses grouped into four distinct sub-sectors – pharma outsourcing; pharmacy chains; development, wholesale and supply (DWS); and consulting.

This year’s leaders are: • Pharma outsourcing: Simbec-Orion, a boutique contract research organisation which has delivered sales growth averaging 49% a year over the past two years.

• Pharmacy chains: Gorgemead, which trades as Cohens Chemist, where sales are up by 51% a year over the past two years.

• DWS: Immunocore, a biopharma business, with sales up by 61% a year over the past two years.

• Consulting: Random42, a specialist in medical animations, with sales up by 34% a year over the past two years.

Alantra’s Tom Cowap added: “These businesses all have a laser focus on value creation in a constantly evolving marketplace: they are succeeding because they recognise the powerful drivers for change in healthcare.” Catalyst Corporate Finance rebranded as Alantra in April, with its partners now leading Alantra’s UK advisory business.

Fastest-growing privately-owned UK pharmaceutical

businesses revealed

New research shows that Britain’s fastest-growing privately-owned pharmaceutical businesses are facing down tough headwinds to deliver stellar rates of growth. The top 10 businesses in the sector have all seen their sales grow by an average of at least 43% a year over the past two years according to the Alantra Pharma Fast 50, an annual ranking of non-listed UK pharmaceutical companies.

The ranking, compiled by Alantra, the global investment banking and asset management firm which last year combined with UK-based Catalyst Corporate Finance, underlines the vibrancy of the UK’s pharmaceutical industry. A broad spread of businesses in the sector are combining innovation, customer service and commercial intelligence to deliver outstanding rates of growth.

“The UK is rightly regarded as a world leader in the pharmaceutical and life sciences industry and beneath the well-known names of big pharma, it is home to a thriving community of privately-owned businesses that consistently deliver long-term value,” said Tom Cowap, a Director in Alantra’s UK advisory business (formerly Catalyst Corporate Finance) who specialises in the Pharmaceutical sector.Cowap added: “Despite the fact that the industry is facing difficult challenges including the spectre of Brexit, tough pressure on margins, demanding regulatory scrutiny and issues such as the patent cliff, the companies in the Alantra Pharma Fast 50 have repeatedly managed to grow their sales at an impressive rate.”

The Alantra Pharma Fast 50 ranks the UK’s fastest-growing, privately-owned pharmaceutical businesses according to revenue growth over the past two years. On this basis, Qualasept Pharmaxo is currently the fastest-growing privately-owned pharmaceuticals business in the UK, having grown its sales by an average of 69% over the past two years. This is the second successive year in which Qualasept, the UK’s largest private aseptic compounding provider, has topped the ranking.

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