Oakley Capital Private Equity III (“Fund III”) has agreed to acquire Apollo Global Germany GmbH (“Career Partner Group”), from its current shareholder Apollo Education Group Inc. Fund III, together with a number of underlying Fund III investors, will hold a 79% stake in the business. Fund III will be partnering with CEO Dr. Sven Schütt and his management team, who will be investing in the new structure.
Career Partner Group is a leading provider of private higher education and personnel development in Germany. Operating principally under the brand of International University of Applied Sciences Bad Honnef (IUBH), the business currently has over 13,500 students enrolled in four types of program: traditional on-campus universities, online university degree courses, dual studies (an alternative to traditional apprenticeships) and corporate training. Fund III will seek to support the continued development of the business particularly in the online university and dual studies segments, both of which are high-growth sectors in Germany.
The business generated revenues of €61.5 million and reported EBITDA of €10.3 million for the year ended 31 August 2017. The transaction is partly funded by a unitranche debt facility from BlueBay. Fund III will invest €85 million in the business. Completion is subject to approval by the Federal Cartel Office, and is anticipated to be on December 31, 2017.