M&A Deal Summary

The Carlyle Group Acquires Unison

On June 29, 2020, private equity firm The Carlyle Group acquired software company Unison from ABRY Partners and American Capital

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is The Carlyle Group’s 48th transaction in the Software sector.
  • This is The Carlyle Group’s 323rd transaction in the United States.
  • This is The Carlyle Group’s 22nd transaction in Virginia.
Investment Fate
  • Unison was sold to a consortium of financial buyers in 2022.

M&A Deal Summary

Date 2020-06-29
Target Unison
Sector Software
Buyer(s) The Carlyle Group
Sellers(s) ABRY Partners
American Capital
Deal Type Secondary Buyout
Advisor(s) Kirkland & Ellis (Legal)

Target

Unison

McLean, Virginia, United States
Unison is a provider of purpose-built procurement and contract management software solutions to U.S. federal government agencies and government contractors. All software development and support are done within the USA. For over 30 years, Unison has continually advanced software and insight solutions to help Federal programs efficiently achieve their missions. Unison was founded in 1983 and is based in McLean, Virginia.

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Buyer(S) 1

Buyer

The Carlyle Group

Washington, District of Columbia, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor


Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1987
PE ASSETS 435.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION
Carlyle's corporate headquarters on Pennsylvania Ave. in Washington, DC.
Carlyle's corporate headquarters on Pennsylvania Ave. in Washington, DC.

The Carlyle Group is a global investment firm that pursues private equity, credit, and real estate investments worldwide. Carlyle's private equity practice practice pursues buyouts, strategic minority equity investments, equity private placements, consolidations and buildups, and growth capital financings. With offices in 19 countries, Carlyle can easily target opportunities throughout North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, the Middle East/North Africa and Latin America. Broad sectors of interest include aerospace, defense, automotive and transportation, consumer, retail, energy and power, financial services, healthcare, industrial, infrastructure, technology services, business services, telecommunications and media. The Carlyle Group was formed in 1987 and is based in Washington DC.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 674 of 750
Sector: Software M&A 48 of 57
Type: Secondary Buyout M&A Deals 105 of 130
State: Virginia M&A 22 of 25
Country: United States M&A 323 of 350
Year: 2020 M&A 10 of 25
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2020-06-29 ENVEA

Poissy, France

ENVEA is manufacturing ambient, emissions, and process monitoring systems, with full turnkey capabilities (gas analyzers, dust monitors, solids and flue gas flow meters, air quality surveillance networks) completed by environmental data processing & reporting solutions. ENVEA was formed in 1978 and is based in Poissy, France.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2020-07-01 Nxtra Data

New Delhi, India

Nxtra Data offers secure data centre services to leading Indian and global enterprises, hyperscalers, start-ups, SMEs and governments. Nxtra Data is based in New Delhi, India.

Buy -

Seller(S) 2

SELLER

ABRY Partners

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor


Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1989
PE ASSETS 12.8B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Focused
DESCRIPTION

ABRY Partners is a media and communications focused private equity investment firm. Specific areas of interest include television, publishing, convention/trade shows, for-profit training, couponing, monitoring services, telephone companies, communications towers, music libraries, database providers, wireless communications, and in-store advertisers. ABRY can provide both equity and mezzanine capital, typically committing $20 to $200 million of equity or $15 to $50 million of mezzanine capital per transaction. Prospective transaction situations include buyouts, expansion financings, platform acquisitions, consolidations, and recapitalizations. ABRY Partners was formed in 1989 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 82 of 104
Sector: Software M&A 6 of 7
Type: Secondary Buyout M&A Deals 25 of 33
State: Virginia M&A 2 of 2
Country: United States M&A 70 of 89
Year: 2020 M&A 2 of 3
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2020-03-09 Beacon Pointe

Newport Beach, California, United States

Beacon Pointe is a registered investment adviser. Clients rely on Beacon Pointe’s professional advisors to help determine investment goals, establish asset allocation guidelines, screen investment managers for selection, evaluate fund performance, and develop strategic financial plans. Beacon Pointe was founded in 2002 and is based in Newport Beach, California.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2020-07-07 HealthEZ

Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

HealthEZ is an independent third-party administrator of employer-sponsored, self-funded medical plans. HealthEZ was founded in 1982 and is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Buy -
SELLER

American Capital


Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1997
PE ASSETS 22.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

American Capital was a publicly traded buyout and mezzanine investment firm. American Capital invested in buyouts, growth capital financings, acquistion financings, and recapitalizations. The Firm looked to finance businesses with at least $4 million in EBITDA and valued between $20 and $500 million. American Capital ws a generalist firm with broad interest in traditional industries such as manufacturing, distribution, and services. American Capital's European investment affiliate is European Capital. European Capital looked to invest $10 to $600 million of equity, mezzanine, and/or senior debt in similar opportunities across Europe. American Capital was formed in 1997 and in January 2017, merged with Ares Capital Management.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 192 of 194
Sector: Software M&A 9 of 9
Type: Secondary Buyout M&A Deals 69 of 71
State: Virginia M&A 8 of 8
Country: United States M&A 184 of 186
Year: 2020 M&A 1 of 1
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2019-06-14 CPP

Cleveland, Ohio, United States

CPP is an aerospace casting manufacturer and offers both sand and investment casting capabilities. The company specializes in producing complex, mission-critical components for a variety of leading commercial and military aircraft and regional/business jets, as well as industrial gas turbines. CPP was founded in 1991 and is based in Cleveland, Ohio.

Sell -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2021-01-22 Transtar Industries

Cleveland, Ohio, United States

Transtar Industries is a distributor and remanufacturer of automotive aftermarket transmission repair parts and manufacturers of automotive refinishing products. Transtar Industries was founded in 1975 and is based in Cleveland, Ohio.

Sell -