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(Bloomberg) — A consortium including asset manager Neuberger Berman is buying a stake in Nord Anglia in a deal valuing the international school operator at $14.5 billion including debt.
Buyout firm EQT AB, one of Nord Anglia’s current major shareholders, is investing in the company again through a newer fund, according to a statement Monday that confirmed an earlier Bloomberg News report. Another existing backer, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, will reinvest a portion of its stake.
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Bloomberg News reported last month that Nord Anglia’s owners were speaking to investors including Neuberger Berman about injecting billions of dollars into the school chain, with EQT set to reinvest through a different fund. They opted for the current structure after also considering offers from rival buyout firms, which didn’t meet expectations, people with knowledge of the matter said at the time.
EQT first invested in Nord Anglia in 2008, before boosting its stake in 2017 and bringing in CPPIB as a partner.
Nord Anglia, founded in 1972, operates more than 80 schools including boarding schools across 33 countries in Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the Americas, according to its website. It offers education from kindergarten to the end of secondary school.
Education has been a busy sector for private equity deals in recent years. A consortium led by Brookfield Asset Management agreed in June to invest in Dubai-based GEMS Education, one of the world’s largest private school operators. Other investors including KKR & Co. and Blackstone Inc. have also looked at transactions in the industry.
Neuberger Berman’s private markets arm employs more than 400 professionals and has managed over $115 billion since its inception.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley acted as lead financial advisers to Nord Anglia. Lazard Inc. served as private capital adviser, while Deutsche Bank AG and HSBC Holdings Plc were also financial advisers to Nord Anglia.
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