Ing. Castaldi Illuminazione is one of the European leaders in outdoor lighting in terms of quality, technical standards, design and innovation. 2006 turnover of approximately € 10 million.

Investindustrial has offices in several European countries and concentrates on middle-market companies in Southern Europe. It actively contributes to the development of portfolio companies by creating growth opportunities in a pan-European dimension.

Wise SGR is one of the most active Italian middle-market specialists with three funds under management, for a total of almost € 300 m. Banca Popolare di Milano owns a minority participation. Wise is part of an alliance with Gruppo De Agostini and Investitori Associati.

Cape Natixis, an Italian private equity fund, specialises on the smaller end of the buy-out market with particularly strong track record in rapid build up by acquisitions.

Castaldi attracted strong interest amongst trade and financial buyers worldwide, including China. After an international auction, Cape Natixis completed the transaction as part of a multiple acquisition project in this industry.

Cross Border assisted the private equity operators Investindustrial e Wise SGR in the sale. We were retained because of our deep knowledge of the lighting sector, accumulated by assisting prime European operators in their acquisition campaigns. Our Global M&A worldwide partnership allowed us to cover the international market sistematically, creating a competitive climate that helped in the valuation. We leveraged on synergies created by Castaldi’s brand strength in the higher market segment. We achieved a particularly high EBITDA multiple, in line with listed peers.