Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW”) has advised Elovade Beteiligungs-GmbH (“Elovade”), a value-added software distributor and portfolio company of HQ Equita, on the acquisition of Swedish software distributor Inuit AB (“Inuit”).
The acquisition is part of Elovade’s international growth strategy, expanding its product portfolio to include further solutions in its key areas of IT security and infrastructure software.
Elovade, based in Wetzlar, Germany, is a leading European distributor of value-added software specialising in IT security and cloud services. 150 experts across Germany, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland support thousands of IT service providers and system houses throughout Europe in the sale and implementation of corresponding software solutions.
HQ Equita, based in Bad Homburg, is one of the most experienced private equity investors in the German-speaking market. Founded in 1992, the company has raised capital commitments totalling around €1bn and invested in more than 35 companies. Investors include institutional investors, family offices, foundations and well-known entrepreneurial families. At the beginning of 2024, Elovade gained another financially strong and experienced partner in Verdane, a private equity investor specialising in sustainable growth and value creation.
Inuit, based in Danderyd, Sweden, is a software distributor that offers efficient solutions for IT operations and IT security, including network and server monitoring, cloud services and IT analytics.
The WFW Corporate and M&A team that advised Elovade was led by Munich Partner Simon Preisenberger, supported by Associates Julian Kasper, Christian Schulten-Baumer and Andreas Urdl. Hamburg Partner Stefan Kilgus advised on financial matters, supported by Senior Associate Marlene Kowerk and Associate Finja Schmale.
Simon commented: “We are delighted to have been able to advise Elovade and our long-standing client HQ Equita on this successful growth acquisition. This deal highlights WFW’s expertise in complex international transactions”.
