London-based PTS Consulting Group (PTS) is hoping to crack the North American market after taking on institutional backing in the shape of the bank-backed Business Growth Fund (BGF).
The £8.7 million commitment from the £2.5 billion fund is the ninth deal to be closed in London and the South East and brings to the portfolio a business which helps the likes of investment banks and FTSE 100 companies implement IT resources into new locations.
Prior to landing the new investment from the BGF, PTS was subject to an MBO led by CEO Kevin Perrett in 1990. Since that deal the business has grown from eight employees to its current level of 400 and predicted revenues of £40 million for 2013.
So far PTS has helped with relocation efforts to sites such as the ‘Gherkin’ in London, Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange and Mori Tower in Tokyo.
The £8.7 million it has now banked will go towards funding geographical expansion, particularly in the North American market, as well as speeding up the development of its STARS service – an accreditation platform. Capital will also be set aside for what the business describes as ‘strategically relevant acquisitions’.
Perrett comments, ‘I am proud of our achievements to date, but we are reaching the limits of what we can deliver organically in acceptable time frames.
‘Additional external investment will allow us to move forward further and faster; by expanding the range of services that we can offer our clients and the geographies where we provide critical on the ground support.’
In its current state, PTS is owned by some 30 individual staff shareholders and will now see Rob Pinchbeck installed as chairman. Pinchbeck has held roles at Petrofec, Sparrows Group and is non-executive director at IGas, Enteq Upstream and Severn Energy International.
The BGF has recently stepped up its dealmaking has now closed six new investments in the last three months. Additions to the fund’s portfolio have included gym chain Xercise4Less, cosmetics brand Arran Aromatics and precision engineering components manufacturer VTL Group.
TIm Whittard, investment director at BGF, says, ‘I have known PTS since 2003 and have enjoyed seeing its continual expansion, doubling in size every three to five years purely from its own resources.
‘However, Kevin and his team have a strategy to continue to develop the business and at a faster rate than before so they can take advantage of this exciting, high-growth market place. This strategy requires capital and additional expertise.’
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