Altus Group completes acquisition of Finance Active
Altus Group solidifies expansion into debt management SaaS Solutions.
Altus Group Limited (ʺAltus Groupʺ or “the Company”) (TSX: AIF), a global provider of commercial real estate (“CRE”) software, data solutions and services, announced that it has completed the transaction to acquire Finance Active SAS (“Finance Active”), a leading provider of debt management SaaS solutions for treasury and investment management. The Company previously announced on March 9, 2021 that it had entered into an agreement to purchase Finance Active.
The acquisition has a number of expected strategic benefits for Altus Group, including:
Accelerating its expansion and speed-to-market in the debt asset class, an attractive adjacency with a sizeable and growing total addressable market for its Altus Analytics business
Enhancing its global CRE asset and investment management capabilities with a market leading debt management SaaS solution, providing for broadened reach across customer segments, use cases and workflows
Growing the Company’s geographic footprint in Europe, a strategic market for Altus Group, with a high-performing and culturally aligned team of approximately 160 professionals and over 3,000 software customers
Enhancing Altus Analytics’ recurring revenue base and growth profile while providing attractive cross-sell synergies
“The acquisition of Finance Active is a critical step to accelerate our growth in the debt asset class, a high-value adjacency that fits very well with our strategic roadmap and addresses client demand,” said Mike Gordon, CEO of Altus Group. “Expanding our offerings into debt management will enable our customers to have a 360-degree view of their investments, helping them maximize value and better manage risk performance. We look forward to combining our talented teams and complementary solutions to better serve our clients.”
“As the founders of Finance Active, Jacques Descourtieux and I are incredibly proud of what our team has built and accomplished over the past two decades in establishing a market leading treasury and investment management solution,” said Patrice Chatard, co-founder and co-CEO of Finance Active. “Joining Altus Group represents an exciting new chapter for Finance Active, positioning us for continued growth and innovation by enhancing the value we can provide for our esteemed clients and our team, and fueling our expansion into new markets.”
Founded in 2000, Finance Active is a leading European provider of debt management and financial risk management SaaS solutions for treasury and investment management serving public, corporate and financial institutions. Utilizing its multi-tenant and API-friendly SaaS cloud platform, its solutions help clients digitize and automate time-consuming and complex tasks with a centralized view of real-time financial information and a wide range of monitoring, valuation, reporting and benchmarking tools. The company is headquartered in Paris, France, with a wide geographic footprint in Europe including over 3,000 customers ranging from small-to-medium businesses to large, global institutions. Finance Active’s team of approximately 160 professionals will be integrated with the Company’s Altus Analytics business.
The transaction is expected to strengthen the Company’s recurring revenue base while providing opportunities for both acquisitive and organic growth to Altus Group’s 2021 revenues and Adjusted EBITDA. As a market leader, Finance Active has steadily been growing its topline, generating gross revenue of approximately €25.0 million (approximately C$38.3 million) in 2020.
Supported by multi-year subscription contracts and a mid-90% gross retention rate, approximately 90% of Finance Active’s revenues are recurring, consistent with Altus Group’s Over Time revenue definition.
Over the past three years Adjusted EBITDA margins have been in the 20% range. As required by IFRS, Altus Group will have an accounting adjustment on Finance Active’s deferred revenues in 2021 which will also impact the Adjusted EBITDA margins in 2021 before they return to a more normalized run-rate in 2022. Longer term, with the enhanced growth profile provided by joining Altus Group, Finance Active’s profitability and Adjusted EBITDA margins are expected to increase. The acquisition is expected to be financially accretive to Altus Group’s adjusted EPS starting in 2022.
The purchase price of this acquisition was approximately €106.5 million (approximately C$157.7 million), subject to adjustments. On closing, Altus Group paid a total of €89.2 million (approximately C$132.1 million) in cash, funded by drawing down on the Company’s credit facility. In addition, Altus Group issued 303,177 common shares to certain members of Finance Active’s management team, in consideration of the acquisition of their shares.
These common shares will be held in escrow and will vest and be released over three years on each anniversary of the closing date, subject to continued employment and compliance with certain terms and conditions. As part of the purchase price, €4.8 million of cash (approximately C$7.1 million) is payable over two years after closing, subject to certain conditions being met.
Key contact
Camilla Bartosiewicz
Chief Communications Officer
Key contact
Camilla Bartosiewicz
Chief Communications Officer
About Altus Group Limited
Altus Group Limited is a leading provider of software, data solutions and independent advisory services to the global commercial real estate industry.
Our businesses, Altus Analytics and Altus Commercial Real Estate Consulting, reflect decades of experience, a range of expertise, and technology-enabled capabilities. Our solutions empower clients to analyze, gain insight and recognize value on their real estate investments.
Headquartered in Canada, we have approximately 2,300 employees around the world, with operations in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. Our clients include many of the world’s largest commercial real estate industry participants. Altus Group pays a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share and our shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol AIF. For more information on Altus Group, please visit: www.altusgroup.com.
Forward-looking information
Certain information in this press release may constitute “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. All information contained in this press release, other than statements of current and historical fact, is forward-looking information. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, Altus Group’s beliefs and expectations regarding the acquisition of Finance Active and the operational and financial prospects and other expectations related thereto, benefits that would be afforded to customers, benefits that are expected to be obtained as a result of the proposed transaction and the Company’s ability to enhance shareholder value through, among other things, the acceleration of Altus Group’s expansion and speed-to-market into in the debt asset class, the enhancement of Altus Group’s global CRE asset and investment management capabilities, the growth of the Company’s geographic footprint in Europe, the enhancement of the Company’s Altus Analytics’ recurring revenue base as well as the provision of cross-sell synergies with the Company’s valuation management, data analytics and ARGUS software solutions and the increase of Finance Active’s profitability and Adjusted EBITDA margins. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by use of words such as “may”, “will”, “expect”, “believe”, “plan”, “would”, “could” and other similar terminology. All of the forward-looking information in this press release is qualified by this cautionary statement.
Forward-looking information is not, and cannot be, a guarantee of future results or events. Forward-looking information is based on, among other things, opinions, assumptions, estimates and analyses that, while considered reasonable by Altus Group at the date the forward-looking information is provided, inherently are subject to significant risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements, industry results or events to be materially different from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. The material factors or assumptions that were identified and were applied by Altus Group in drawing conclusions or making forecasts or projections set out in the forward-looking information include, but are not limited to: to the total addressable market for the Company’s Altus Analytics business, as well as Altus Group’s business and operating initiatives; its expectations of future performance for its various business units, the successful execution of Altus Group’s business strategies (including the success of its initiatives related to Finance Active); consistent and stable economic conditions or conditions in the financial markets; consistent and stable legislation in the various countries in which Altus Group operates; no disruptive changes in the technology environment; the opportunity to acquire accretive businesses; the successful integration of Altus Group’s businesses; and the continued availability of qualified professionals. Forward-looking information is also subject to a number of risks, including but not limited to: the reaction of Altus Group and Finance Active’s customers, employees and suppliers to the transaction; the ability to promptly and effectively integrate the business and management of Finance Active with Altus Group; the diversion of management time on transaction-related issues. Please consult Altus Group’s most recent regulatory filings on SEDAR for more information on the Company’s forward-looking statements and for additional risks relating to the Company.
Given these risks, uncertainties and other factors, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information as a prediction of actual results. The forward-looking information reflects management’s current expectations and beliefs regarding future events and operating performance and is based on information currently available to management. Although Altus Group has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking information contained herein, there are other factors that could cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. The forward-looking information contained herein is current as of the date of this press release and, except as required under applicable law, Altus Group does not undertake to update or revise it to reflect new events or circumstances. Additionally, Altus Group undertakes no obligation to comment on analyses, expectations or statements made by third parties in respect of Altus Group, its financial or operating results, or its securities.
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