Investcorp, a global provider and manager of alternative investment products, has reached an agreement to invest $20 million in Calligo Limited, a fast growing provider of cloud solutions focused on serving the global mid-tier enterprise segment.

Founded in 2012, with the aim of leveraging jurisdictions across the globe that offer a robust data protection framework, Calligo provides a trusted cloud platform for hosting mid-tier enterprises, their data and applications, said a statement.

The company’s proprietary cloud platform offers the highest levels of data privacy along with application performance guarantees, commercial flexibility and a personalised support service. Calligo services hundreds of clients all over the world from its locations in Jersey, Guernsey, Switzerland, Singapore and Bermuda. The investment by Investcorp is expected to accelerate Calligo’s international expansion with new office locations in North America and the UK.

Calligo is well positioned in the fast growing public cloud Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) market which grew 51 per cent in 2015 and is expected to more than triple in size by 2020. Mid-size enterprises represent the fastest growing, most underserved business segment with a cloud adoption rate of only 5 per cent. In the first nine months of 2016, Calligo grew its revenues by approximately 100 per cent year-on-year.

Investcorp has established a market leading position of investing in lower mid-market technology companies with a particular focus on Data / Analytics, IT Security and Fintech / Payments and has raised more than $1 billion in funding for technology investments. Other recent Investcorp technology transactions include the sale of CSIdentity to Experian, the sale of TDX Group to Equifax Inc; the partial exit of Fishnet through a merger with Accuvant; the ultimate full sale of Skrill Group to Optimal Payments (now renamed Paysafe Group plc); and the flotation of Sophos Group plc on the London Stock Exchange.

Commenting on the investment, Mohammed Al-Shroogi, co-CEO at Investcorp, said: "The mid-tier enterprise segment is lagging behind in adopting cloud solutions.  In our view, Calligo pairs an attractive market opportunity with a highly attractive product and a proven and experienced management team. With our strong track record of working with fast-growing, founder-owned businesses in the technology space, we believe that we will be a valuable partner to the company as it continues to expand internationally, both organically and through targeted add-on acquisitions.”

Fahad Murad, managing director at Investcorp in Bahrain, said: “Demand is growing rapidly for public cloud service providers and we see huge potential in Calligo. We are excited by the prospect of providing our knowledge and expertise to support its ambitious growth plans and we look forward to working closely with Calligo’s leadership team.”

Julian Box, chief executive officer, Calligo, added: “We are extremely pleased to have found the right partner in Investcorp during this exciting period of growth for the business. I believe Investcorp’s proven track record, global presence and extensive network will support the company’s continued international expansion and product innovation. Our ability to attract this investment is a fantastic validation of the business we’ve managed to build so far and we believe the ongoing support from Investcorp will enable us to continue our exponential growth.”

As Investcorp continues to identify investment opportunities in the technology sector, the company has recently recruited two new investment team members, Georg Knoflach and Julian Bennet as vice presidents.

Knoflach joins Investcorp from technology-focused private equity firm, Silver Lake where he worked for four years. Prior to that, he was part of Merrill Lynch’s investment banking team in Germany. Bennet joined Investcorp following three years in the technology team of HG Capital in London. Prior to that, he worked at Augusta & Co, a mid-market UK corporate finance boutique and Morgan Stanley, primarily in their technology M&A team, in both London and Dubai.

Gilbert Kamieniecky and Georg Knoflach will join the board of Calligo as non-executive directors.
Q Advisors, a leading TMT investment banking boutique, acted as financial advisor and placement agent to Calligo.  - TradeArabia News Service