ECI Partners has closed its fifth exit in the last year by selling its stake in CarTrawler to BC Partners and Insight Venture Partners.

Dublin-based CarTrawler has a new private equity backer after ECI Partners ended its three-year involvement in the company.

Online car rental service provider CarTrawler was set up in 2004 by Greg and Niall Turley, a duo who achieved a partial exit in the company when ECI Partners invested in 2011.

Since that date, CarTrawler has trebled its revenues and doubled its staff count. It also acquired Holiday Autos, one of ECI Partner’s portfolio companies.

The deal represents a 6x multiple on ECI’s initial investment and is reportedly its biggest exit by value to date.

Mike McGearty, CEO of CarTrawler, comments, ‘ECI has played an important role in CarTrawler’s success, providing us with financial backing and commercial support, helping us to grow our business and accelerate its global expansion.’

In its current state, CarTrawler has in excess of 1,000 partners, 1,200 suppliers and 30,000 pick-up locations.

Greg and Niall Turley made a reported €80 million when they sold a majority stake to ECI Partners, and held onto a 25 per cent stake. In the new deal, BC Partners is buying up a majority stake, while Insight Venture Partners is securing a minority interest.

More on ECI Partners deals:

• New backing for Citation
• ECI bid for Premier Research
• Wireless Logic snapped up by ECI

Exiting chairman of CarTrawler Richard Prosser says, ‘CarTrawler has a highly talented and motivated management team who have crafted a significant value for the existing stakeholders.’

The sale of CarTrawler by ECI Partners is the first to be made from its ECI 9 fund and follows the recent exits of Bargain Booze for a 4.5x multiple and Clinisys for 2.5x.

Chris Watt, partner and head of ECI’s Consumer sector team, adds, ‘We have enjoyed a very strong and successful partnership with CarTrawler and the company’s exceptional management team.

‘Since 2011 the business has achieved a huge amount of ECI’s support and is now a leading, global technology company and a market leader in the online car rental space.’