Apex Group is set to acquire Mainspring, a UK-based provider of venture capital fund administration and accounting services.
Mainspring provides outsourced administration and accounting services to small and medium sized venture fund managers in the UK. Mainspring also operates an FCA-regulated custody business for fund managers offering managed account investments such as EIS funds.
The addition of Mainspring adds 70 employees in two UK offices, and assets under administration (AuA) of £9.7bn to Apex Group. This is comprised of £3.7bn on Mainspring’s Investment Platform which provides private markets funds and deal custody, and £6.0bn of venture capital fund administration.
Mainspring brings notable new capabilities to Apex Group for international private markets custody and SMA administration as well as a depth of experience in venture capital fund administration that complements the Group’s existing offering.
Through this acquisition, Mainspring’s clients will benefit from Apex Group’s global perspective, access to a network of local experts and a wide range of services including Digital Banking and ESG Ratings & Advisory. Apex Group’s services are provided through a single relationship, offering efficient, scalable solutions and enabling growth and expansion into new jurisdictions.
This announcement follows the recent close of the acquisition of Sanne, with Apex Group now providing services to almost $3 trillion of assets, delivered via 10,000 employees from over 80 offices in more than 40 markets.
Peter Hughes, Founder and CEO of Apex Group, comments: “The strategic acquisition of Mainspring adds depth to our service offering for UK venture capital funds, as well as strengthening our existing custody offering for private assets. As private equity and venture capital continue to become more accessible to a wider pool of investors, including wealth management clients, we are continuously evolving our single-source solution to offer the administration, custody and reporting services in order to be the best possible partner for our clients.”
Stephen Geddes, Founder and CEO of Mainspring, adds: “We are excited to be joining Apex Group and are confident it will enable us to provide our clients with the services needed to expand into new jurisdictions and achieve their full potential. Apex Group’s powerful single-source solution, offered globally and delivered locally by experienced teams, is underpinned by robust technology infrastructure, which will create new efficiencies for our clients and support their long term growth.”
Paddock Consultancy served as financial advisors to Mainspring, with Burges Salmon providing legal advice. Simmons and Simmons acted as legal advisors to Apex Group on the transaction. The transaction is subject to customary conditions, including regulatory approvals expected in late 2022.
