EQT Infrastructure has bought German fibre optic broadband network provider Inexio from Warburg Pincus.
Based in Stockholm, EQT Infrastructure is a sub-brand of investment firm EQT that funds a range of medium-sized infrastructure businesses in the Nordic region, Continental Europe and North America.
It has acquired the full company from private equity firm Warburg Pincus, along with co-shareholders Deutsche Beteiligungs AG and other minority investors.
Inexio was founded by David Zimmer in 2007 and has invested heavily in fiber-optic infrastructure in rural and small-town communities in Germany, predominantly in the South and South West.
The company currently provides high-speed internet access to more than 110,000 customers and 6,000 businesses. Its network consists of more than 10,000km of fiber-optic infrastructure, which Warburg Pincus says provides a strong platform for continued growth.
The private equity firm invested in inexio founder David Zimmer in 2016. The company has since doubled its network footprint, grown its customer base by over 70%, completed two value enhancing acquisitions and more than doubled EBITDA.
Rene Obermann, managing director of Warburg Pincus said: “Warburg Pincus is proud of inexio’s achievements since the beginning of our partnership with David Zimmer and his team in 2016. Together, we have further accelerated the organic growth of the business, made very substantial infrastructure investments in Germany and completed two acquisitions.
“Our investment in inexio and our partnership with David are textbook examples of our strategy to back first-class founders and entrepreneurs to build sustainable businesses for the future. David and his team have done an excellent job and we wish them all well in the future”
Zimmer, Founder and chief executive of inexio, added: “We are grateful for the excellent partnership with Warburg Pincus over the past three years – their operational and financial expertise have been instrumental to our strong development and they have been a strong and trusted partner. From our excellent position today, we will continue to invest heavily to bring modern and reliable fiber-optic infrastructure to two million German households by 2030.”
Completion of the transaction is subject to approval by antitrust authorities. Evercore, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Rothschild & Co and EY acted as advisors to Warburg Pincus.
