Occurrences after closing of the financial year and prospects
- On 2 May last, European Cleantech I SE (ECT I), which is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, announced that it had signed an agreement with the management and shareholders of Electrawinds on a business combination. This combination allows Electrawinds to attract additional growth finance and to acquire a stock exchange listing on NYSE Euronext Brussels.
- Also in early May, Gimv announced the sale of its 33% interest shareholding in the temping-selection company Accent Jobs to French private equity player Naxicap. Since Gimv's entry in 2006, the company has experienced organic growth along with a European expansion with a further roll-out of its activities and acquisitions in the Netherlands and Spain. Sales rose from EUR 92 million in 2006 to over EUR 330 million in 2011, with EBITDA increasing from EUR 6.9 million to EUR 30.5 million over the same period. This places Accent Jobs among the top 10 in Belgium, making it one of Belgium's fastest-growing HR companies. The sale of Accent Jobs has an ultimate positive impact of EUR 17.4 million (EUR 0.75 per share) on the value of Gimv’s equity at 31 March 2012. This transaction is subject to approval by the European antitrust authorities.
- On 21 May Gimv announced its investment in the second closing of a Series B equity financing round of Prosonix (Oxford, UK), a specialty pharmaceutical company developing a portfolio of inhaled respiratory medicines using its own particle engineering technology.
Prospects
Despite the macro-economic uncertainty that continues to influence financial markets, we are confident that the group is well positioned and the portfolio adequately diversified. In the slightly improved market conditions of the past quarter the portfolio again proved again its worth and its value creation potential. The future results of our businesses and value development remain, however, dependent on a number of external factors such as: (i) the international macroeconomic and geopolitical climate and growth prospects, (ii) the stability and liquidity of the financial system, in terms of both valuation levels and the financing of our businesses, (iii) the receptivity of the market for new IPOs and capital operations, (iv) the appetite of international groups and industry players for further acquisitions.