Software & Fintech, M&A

Bryan, Garnier & Co acts as Sole Financial Advisor to Activa Capital and the Management of Explore Group on its sale to Intescia

Founded in 1997 by Laurent Nicouleau and Philippe Raison, Explore Group has firmly established itself as the foremost provider of information regarding tenders in the construction and commercial project sector in France.

The acquisition of Explore Group will consolidate Intescia’s position with a unique portfolio of solutions covering construction, real estate, business services, healthcare, and retail, serving over 20,000 customers and 100,000 users in Europe.

This recent transaction comes merely four years after Activa Capital’s initial commitment. During this period, Explore Group has notably acquired 3 highly complementary companies, enabling the expansion of its solution portfolio and distribution channels, reinforcing the verticalization of its offerings, and consolidating its leadership in the real estate and construction sector.

Bryan, Garnier & Co acted as Sole Financial Advisor to Activa Capital and the Management of Explore Group, leading player in BtoB data intelligence for real estate and construction, on its sale to Intescia, a portfolio company of Five Arrows

Bryan, Garnier & Co assisted Explore Group in the context of a bilateral process with Intescia, together with its sponsor Five Arrows.

This marks another landmark transaction for Bryan, Garnier & Co’s software practice. Other notable transactions this year include the sale of Sinari to Bridgepoint Development Capital, the investment of Keensight in e-Attestation, the disposal of Nomadia to Hg Capital, the sale of Evolucare to Gpi, the sale of a minority stake of Driiveme to ISAI or the sale of Brainwave GRC to Radiant Logic, a portfolio company of TA Associates

"Our journey with Activa Capital has been nothing short of transformative, and our partnership with Bryan, Garnier & Co has been instrumental in achieving this milestone. As we join forces with Intescia, we're not just making a deal; we're consistently pursuing and enhancing Explore's ambitions in the field of B2B data intelligence."

— Laurent Nicouleau and Philippe Raison - founding directors of Explore

Explore Group is a leading player in B2B data intelligence with undisputed expertise in real estate and construction. Building on 25 years of expertise, Explore Group is home to several brands including Explore, the leading French provider for construction project intelligence, Wanao for public tender management, Sendao for fully-outsourced tender submission and Codata, the leader in retail and commercial real estate data. Explore Group operates from offices in France, Belgium and Morocco.

Intescia is a key European player in commercial prospection, construction project intelligence and public tender management solutions. With over 20 years of expertise in the collection, treatment and enrichment of unstructured data across industries and geographies, the group is a comprehensive business intelligence partner for B2B and B2G players. Intescia operates from offices in France, Italy, Spain, Tunisia and Mauritius.

Five Arrows is the alternative assets arm of Rothschild & Co and has €23 billions of AuM with offices in Paris, London, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Luxembourg. With over €9 billion of assets under management, the corporate private equity business of Five Arrows is focused on backing companies with highly defensible market positions; strong management teams; business models with high visibility of organic unit volume growth and strong unit economics; and multiple operational levers that can be used to unlock latent value. Preferred sectors are data and software, technology-enabled business services and healthcare.