London, UK, 27 June 2024. CVC, one of the world's leading private equity firms, is pleased toannounce the acquisition of M Group Services, the UK’s largest provider of essentialinfrastructure services and solutions. CVC Fund IX will acquire the business from PAI Partners,a pre-eminent private equity firm. The transaction is expected to complete in Q3 2024.Headquartered in the UK, M Group Services, which supports and partners with major essentialinfrastructure providers in water, energy, telecom and transport by providing recurring repairand maintenance services, was formed in 2016 from Morrison Utility Services. The business hasover 100 years of heritage, employs more than 11,000 people and operates from over 216locations nationwide.The business has scaled significantly under PAI’s ownership: total revenues have increasedfrom £1 billion in 2018 to over £2 billion today, the order book has doubled in size, and thecompany has successfully delivered on a strategy to broaden its service offering and move upthe value chain. In support of this strategy, the Group has acquired and successfully integrated14 complementary businesses since 2018.Leveraging PAI’s deep sector expertise in Business Services, the Group has also benefitted fromextensive investment to strengthen its platform, improving operational functions andprocesses, enhancing its IT infrastructure and advancing its sustainability credentials, whichare consistently recognised as industry leading. The success of this strategy has led to a morediversified and resilient business model, deeper client relationships and a strong platform fromwhich M Group Services can continue to grow with the support of its new owners.CVC is investing out of Fund IX, its most recent fund that closed at €26 billion in 2023,becoming the largest private equity fund ever raised, and brings substantial experience ofinvesting in and growing UK businesses. CVC will work closely with M Group Services’management team to accelerate its organic growth and development in this next phase,complemented by further strategic value-enhancing M&A. Recognising the long-termrelationships with clients, employees and suppliers that underpin M Group Services’successful track record, CVC is committed to upholding the Group’s commitment to safety,client-focused delivery, sustainability and innovation.Andrew Findlay, Chief Executive of M Group Services, said: “We would like to thank PAIPartners for their strong support and commitment to our growth since 2018. We are delightedthat CVC has decided to support our clear and ambitious plan to continue to grow and deliverat pace, built on our solid market-leading foundations. We look forward to working inpartnership with CVC to deliver our future plans. This is great for our people, our clients andtheir customers.”Dominic Murphy, Managing Partner and Co-Head of the UK Team at CVC and Tim Gallico,Partner at CVC, said: “M Group Services is a leader in an attractive market growing on the backof structural trends linked to ageing infrastructure, decarbonisation initiatives and technologytransitions. We are delighted to support its management team in this exciting next phase of itsgrowth and development.”Colm O’Sullivan, Partner & Head of the UK Team at PAI, said: “We are delighted to havesupported M Group Services over the last six years and to have guided its transformation intothe leading provider of essential infrastructure services in the UK – a classic example of PAIinvesting in the Real Economy. Thank you to the Group’s management team for the excellentpartnership. With a well-invested platform, extensive service offering and clear leadership insustainability, M Group Services is well placed to continue its successful journey in the yearsahead.”Deutsche Bank acted as lead financial adviser to PAI, with Citi also acting as financial adviser.Evercore acted as financial adviser to CVC.
