M&A Deal Summary

Thomas H. Lee Partners, NB Private Equity Partners and SoftBank Acquire AutoStore

On June 19, 2019, private equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners, asset manager NB Private Equity Partners and SoftBank acquired information technology company AutoStore from EQT

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is Thomas H. Lee Partners’ 6th, NB Private Equity Partners’ 2nd and SoftBank’s 1st transaction in the Information Technology sector.
  • This is Thomas H. Lee Partners’ 1st, NB Private Equity Partners’ 1st and SoftBank’s 1st transaction in Norway.
Investment Fate
  • AutoStore went public in 2021.

M&A Deal Summary

Date 2019-06-19
Target AutoStore
Sector Information Technology
Buyer(s) Thomas H. Lee Partners
NB Private Equity Partners
SoftBank
Sellers(s) EQT
Deal Type Secondary Buyout

Target

AutoStore

Nedre Vats, Norway
AutoStore is an automated robotic storage and retrieval system equipment and software manufacturer for the warehouse & distribution end-market. The Company has developed proprietary software and robotics technology for collection of warehouse-stored goods, providing significant improvements in warehouse capacity and packing / picking performance. AutoStore was founded in 1996 and is based in Nedre Vats , Norway.

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Buyer(S) 3

Buyer

Thomas H. Lee Partners

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor


Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1974
PE ASSETS 35.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Thomas H. Lee Partners (THL) is a private equity firm that seeks buyout, expansion, consolidation, distressed, and recapitalization investments across various industries. Sectors of interest include business and information services, consumer products/retail, financial services, healthcare, industrial, and media/communications. THL looks to invest $100 to $400 million in companies valued up to $2.5 billion. THL was formed in 1974 and is based in Boston, Massachusetts.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 68 of 92
Sector: Information Technology M&A 6 of 8
Type: Secondary Buyout M&A Deals 21 of 34
Country: Norway M&A 1 of 1
Year: 2019 M&A 3 of 5
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2019-03-27 Fortna

Atlanta, Georgia, United States

Fortna is a provider of global automation and engineering services that designs, develops, and delivers powerful automated and intelligent software solutions that optimize performance, address disruption, and increase profitability. Fortna was founded in 1946 and is based in Atlanta, Georgia.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2019-06-26 Nextech

Tampa, Florida, United States

Nextech is a fully-integrated, specialty specific, certified EMR, practice management, and marketing software that covers a wide array of specialty practice needs. Nextech was founded in 1997 and is based in Tampa, Florida.

Buy -
DESCRIPTION

NB Private Equity Partners is a publicly traded asset manager focused on acquiring direct investments in privately held companies. The Firm principally targets businesses in the US and looks to invest alongside other private equity managers when considering opportunities. NB Private Equity Partners is headquartered in the UK, with an additional office in the US.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 27 of 39
Sector: Information Technology M&A 2 of 2
Type: Secondary Buyout M&A Deals 14 of 20
Country: Norway M&A 1 of 1
Year: 2019 M&A 3 of 5
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2019-05-09 Osaic

Scottsdale, Arizona, United States

Osaic provides comprehensive broker-dealer services, technology, and advisory programs through its four registered broker-dealers and Registered Investment Advisors. Osaic was founded in 1999 and is based in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2019-06-26 Constellation Automotive Group

Hampshire, United Kingdom

Constellation Automotive Group is a vehicle remarketing company specializes in multi-channel auctions of second-hand cars, vans, and trucks from leading European vehicle vendors. The company constantly offer thousands of used vehicles - all available for 24/7 viewing online. Constellation Automotive Group was founded in 1946 and is based in Hampshire, United Kingdom.

Buy £1.9B
Buyer

SoftBank

Tokyo, Japan

Category Company
Founded 1981
Sector Diversified
Employees67,229
Revenue 7.24T JPY (2025)
DESCRIPTION

SoftBank is a diversified telecommunications and internet corporation, with operations in broadband, fixed-line telecommunications, e-commerce, Internet, broadmedia, technology services, finance, media and marketing, and other businesses. SoftBank was founded in 1981 and is based in Tokyo, Japan.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 23 of 30
Sector: Information Technology M&A 1 of 1
Type: Secondary Buyout M&A Deals 1 of 1
Country: Norway M&A 1 of 1
Year: 2019 M&A 2 of 2
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2019-06-12 Wellhub

New York, New York, United States

Wellhub is a corporate fitness platform providing gym benefit programs to corporate clients. Wellhub was founded in 2012 and is based in New York, New York.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2019-12-10 Wag!

San Francisco, California, United States

Wag! provides access to on-demand pet services and is transforming the pet industry by simplifying pet care. With its mobile-first platform and a foundation built on data science and automation capabilities, Wag! is consolidating the pet wellness and services industries online and through its mobile app. Wag! was founded in 2014 and is based in San Francisco, California.

Sell -

Seller(S) 1

SELLER

EQT

Stockholm, Sweden

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor


Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1994
PE ASSETS 242.0B EUR
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

EQT is a global private equity group that purses a variety of investment strategies around the world. EQT is divided into several investment disciplines, including private capital, real assets, credit, and venture. The Firm's private capital group targets large, market-leading enterprises (investment size of €125 to €1.5 billion) across Europe and the US, as well as mid-market, growth companies (investment size of €40 to €125 million) across the US, Europe, China, and Southeast Asia. The Firm's real assets group seeks to identify control or co-control equity investments (investment size of €500 to €1 billion) in medium-sized infrastructure companies that provide an essential service to society, are recession resilient, and have secure cash flows. EQT's credit group provides flexible, long-term debt capital solutions to medium-sized European businesses, across a wide range of sectors. EQT was established in 1994 and is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 119 of 194
Sector: Information Technology M&A 6 of 15
Type: Secondary Buyout M&A Deals 34 of 61
Country: Norway M&A 5 of 10
Year: 2019 M&A 7 of 15
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2019-06-19 Acumatica

Bellevue, Washington, United States

Acumatica is a provider of cloud-based business management software that enables small and mid-size companies to accelerate their businesses. Built on cloud and mobile technology and a unique customer-centric licensing model, Acumatica delivers a suite of fully integrated business management applications such as Financials, Project Accounting, Commerce, Manufacturing, Field Service and CRM, on a robust and flexible platform. Acumatica was founded in 2007 and is based in Bellevue, Washington.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2019-07-01 Svenska Verksamhetsfastigheter

Sweden

Svenska Verksamhetsfastigheter is an operator of a real estate holding company whose primary activities focus on the acquisition of warehouses and light industrial properties in city-center locations.

Buy -