Funds advised by Castik Capital, the European private equity investment firm, have entered into binding agreements to acquire majority stakes in two fast-growing intellectual property management services and software companies, ipan Group and Delegate.
ipan Group, headquartered in Munich, is a rapidly-growing provider of intellectual property management services and software. With offices throughout Europe and the US, and long-standing partnerships with 100+ leading IP law firms, it offers highly transparent, efficient and flexible patent annuity, trademark renewal and European Patent (EP) validation services, as well as extended services such as IP recordals. Ipan Group’s software offering comprises the leading intellectual property management software solutions Unycom, IPfolio and IPSS, which enable both corporate IP departments and IP law firms to efficiently manage their IP portfolios along the entire lifecycle. Through the recent launch of ip-x-change, ipan Group has created an open platform connecting services and software to offer a single point of contact for all IP services to its 450+ clients. Founded in 2004 by Anton Bory, ipan Group is led since February 2018 by CEO Jens Lütcke.
Delegate is a fast-growing administrative support service provider with a very strong capability and reputation in services for EP validations and foreign filings, and a growing presence in IP renewals services and IP recordals. It was formed in 2015 through the merger of Valipat, the Brussels-based leading provider of EP validation and filing services, and Envoy, the Glasgow-based fast-growing IP renewals services provider. With offices in Europe and the U.S., it serves 700+ IP law firms and corporate IP departments with in-house attorneys through an agent network of 170+ leading law firms, covering all jurisdictions of the worldwide IP markets. The company is led by CEO Patrice Durand, who has been involved in Valipat since its foundation as part of IP law firm Gevers Group and subsequent spin-off.
“Castik Capital is excited by this opportunity of acquiring two great companies in the growing IP management services and software market, thereby creating an ideal platform for continued organic growth that will enable both companies to develop and enhance their high-quality suite of products and services.” said Michael Phillips, Investment Partner at Castik Capital.
The two companies are continuing to operate under their own brands and will be led by the existing Delegate and ipan Group management teams, who are all fully on board and highly committed to this exciting project.
“This combination is a game-changer. ipan Group and Delegate share similar customer-centric and innovative DNAs. Bringing together our talented teams and highly complementary service and software offerings will enable us to address increasing business demands from IP professionals around the world.” said Patrice Durand, the CEO of Delegate. “This deal sets us on a unique path to face the exciting challenges of the IP industry.”
“We are excited to join forces with ipan Group and Castik, which will be a step-change in our combined capabilities to serve our clients.” said Envoy’s founder David Kennedy.
“We are excited to partner with Castik to enter into the next phase of growth. The combination with Delegate marks another milestone in our development as a leading global provider along the entire IP management lifecycle.” said Anton Bory, founder of ipan Group.
“Combining our complementary focus areas and capabilities will enable us to deliver an even more attractive offering for our customers going forward, and to do so even more efficiently. We are excited to take this next step to accelerate our joint development in partnership with Castik.” said Jens Lütcke, the CEO of ipan Group.
Castik was advised on the transaction by Marks Baughan Securities, PWC and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
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About Castik
Castik Capital S.à.r.l (“Castik Capital”) manages investments in private equity. Castik Capital is a European multi-strategy investment manager, acquiring significant ownership positions in European private and public companies, where long-term value can be generated through active partnerships with management teams.
Castik has an investment horizon of up to ten years – longer than most other private equity funds. This enables Castik to focus resources on its portfolio companies and ensure sustainable, long-term value creation.
Founded in 2014, Castik Capital is based in Luxembourg and focuses on identifying and developing investment opportunities across Europe. Investments are made by the Luxembourg-based fund, EPIC I SLP, the first fund managed by Castik, which had its final close at EUR 1.0bn in August 2015.
More information can be found at http://castik.lu
About Delegate IP
Delegate is a fast-growing administrative support service provider with a very strong capability and reputation in services for EP validations and foreign filings, and a growing presence in IP renewals services and IP recordals. It was formed in 2015 through the merger of Valipat, the Brussels-based leading provider of EP validation and filing services, and Envoy, the Glasgow-based fast-growing IP renewals services provider. With offices in Europe and the U.S., it serves 700+ IP law firms and corporate IP departments with in-house attorneys through an agent network of 170+ leading law firms, covering all jurisdictions of the worldwide IP markets. The company is led by CEO Patrice Durand, who has been involved in Valipat since its foundation as part of IP law firm Gevers Group and subsequent spin-off.
More information can be found at https://www.delegateip.com
About ipan Group
ipan Group, headquartered in Munich, is a rapidly-growing provider of intellectual property management services and software. With offices throughout Europe and the US, and long-standing partnerships with 100+ leading IP law firms, it offers highly transparent, efficient and flexible patent annuity, trademark renewal and European Patent (EP) validation services, as well as extended services such as IP recordals. Ipan Group’s software offering comprises the leading intellectual property management software solutions Unycom, IPfolio and IPSS, which enable both corporate IP departments and IP law firms to efficiently manage their IP portfolios along the entire lifecycle. Through the recent launch of ip-x-change, ipan Group has created an open platform connecting services and software to offer a single point of contact for all IP services to its 450+ clients. Founded in 2004 by Anton Bory, ipan Group is led since February 2018 by CEO Jens Lütcke.
More information can be found at https://www.ipan-services.com
Media contact:
Marina Jané Sánchez
CNC
+44 20 3219 8811
