CVC Capital Partners buys 100% of La Piadineria
The CVC Capital Partners fund acquires 100% of the La Piadineria restaurant chain. This news is reported by Il Sole 24 Ore. Negotiations are at an advanced stage, and the agreement should be made official in the next few days with its signature. Current shareholder Permira, another private equity fund, will cede control of the renowned Made in Italy restaurant chain. CVC Capital Partners, led by managing partner Giampiero Mazza, has been in negotiations for several weeks to acquire 100% of the shares of La Piadineria. Financial sources indicate an “enterprise value” evaluation of more than 300 million euros. The objective of the purchase is to further develop the company, both through organic growth and through acquisitions, including internationally, with the aim of creating a hub in the fast food restaurant sector, considered highly fragmented.
Permira, led in Italy by Francesco Pascalizi and assisted by advisors Mediobanca and Rothschild in the valorisation of the asset, had acquired control of La Piadineria between the end of 2017 and the beginning of 2018 for a sum of 250 million euros. Previously, since 2015, the chain was controlled by the Idea Taste of Italy fund, managed by Dea Capital Alternative Funds sgr (a De Agostini group company). Despite the closures due to the lockdown during the pandemic, the turnover of La Piadineria, supported by Permira, has tripled in recent years. In 2023, a higher group turnover is expected to 200 million euros, with over 300 restaurants distributed throughout the national territory.
CVC Capital Partners, founded in 1981 as the European arm of Citicorp Venture Fund, is one of the leading international private equity funds. It manages over $52 billion in assets across Europe and Asia and is historically one of the most active investors in Italy. Among its investments in the country there are stakes in the betting and gaming sector with Sisal, in the provision of business information with Cerved, in the leather manufacturer for the automotive sector Pasubio, in the pharmaceutical company Recordati, in the digital transformation of electricity networks with Gridspertise (with 50% taken over by Enel), in e-learning and training with Multiversity and in consultancy with Bip. CVC has recently been linked to possible deals, including an interest in Serie A football's TV rights business last year and links to a possible deal in fintech Nexi.
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