Bahrain’s Investcorp acquires majority stake in marketplace Ageras

Bahrain-based Investcorp has announced an agreement to acquire a majority stake in European small and medium enterprise marketplace Ageras.

The company, which connects SMEs with professional services providers like accountants and lawyers, operates in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Holland and Germany from its Copenhagen headquarters.

Investcorp said Ageras connected 16,000 customers last year and grew revenues by 60 per cent without external investment.

It will use the investment funds to expand in the Scandinavian market and new geographies.

“The company’s attractive offering and focus on customer service give it a real edge and we see an opportunity to expand its geographic footprint throughout Europe,” said Fahad Murad, managing director at Investcorp.

The deal will see Investcorp’s Gilbert Kamieniecky and Julian Bennet join the Ageras board as non-executive directors.

The value of the deal was not disclosed.

Investcorp’s other recent investments have included $400m of US property and a majority stake in Spanish agricultural firm Agromillora

Read: Bahrain’s Investcorp acquires three US properties for $400m

It said in February it was targeting investments in US business services and UK real estate in 2017.

Read: Bahrain’s Investcorp targets US service sector, UK property