Verdane, a Nordic Growth Investment company acquires a majority in the driver instruction company CAP-Group

Press release, Oct 8th, 2019

Verdane, a Nordic Growth Investment company acquires a majority in the driver instruction company CAP-Group

The internationally expanding company is especially interested in the Norwegian markets.

The largest driver instruction company in the Nordic region, CAP-Group, is focusing its future strongly in the European markets. Verdane, a Nordic Investment Fund is acquiring a majority stake in CAP-Group and is poised to accelerate the company’s international expansion.

Of the previous investors in CAP, the pension fund Elo and Insurance company LähiTapiola will relinquish all their holdings. All the entrepreneur shareholders will stay on in the company as minority shareholders. The CEO of the company, Pekka Kari, is the founder of the company and will stay on as a shareholder and CEO.

The purchase price is not disclosed. The acquisition has no direct bearing on the company’s operations in Finland. CAP-Driver Academy will continue doing business as usual in Finland.

CAP-Group acquired technology in March 2018 when the company became a majority stakeholder in the Tornio based technology company Datadrivers. The technical knowhow of CAP and Datadrivers is believed to be in demand outside Finland too.

– Our aim has to been to expand internationally for some time already, but so far, we have had a lot of opportunities domestically. We have done our homework on the European markets. We believe that our operational model will be in demand abroad. Now we are poised to take our concept and technology to international markets, says the CEO of CAP-Group Pekka Kari.

Kari is very satisfied that the company has found an excellent new owner with the capabilities and appetite for risk needed to take a Finnish company international.

Verdane manages investment funds worth about 1,8 Billion Euros and it has interests in several European countries. For example, Verdane is an investor in the parking service company EasyPark.

One attractive market for CAP-Group is Norway where, according to Kari, they will pilot their concept and technology of CAP with the support of Verdane, which itself hails originally from Norway.

The Verdane representative in Finland, Janne Holmia says that the investment fund has been interested in the application of technology in driver instruction with the use of for example simulators which is more advanced in Finland than in any other market in the Nordics or Europe.

– It is part of our strategy to partner with technology driven growth companies. When technology and digitalization are applied to improve a relatively traditional sector, there is added value in the synergy, Holmia says.

The turnover of CAP-Group in 2018 was about 21 Million Euros, a growth of 25 percent from the previous year. The company expects strong growth to continue in the future.

The financial advisors for CAP and the shareholders in the transaction was Jonver Capital Oy and Smartius Oy was their legal counsel.

The transaction is conditional to assent of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment and that of the Finnish Consumer and Competition Authority.

Further information

Pekka Kari, CEO
CAP-Group Oy
tel. +358 40 552 6343
pekka.kari@cap.fi

Janne Holmia, Principal
Verdane
tel. +358 400 843 333
janne.holmia@verdane.com

CAP-Group Oy is the largest driver instruction company in the Nordic region creating significant added value to its customers through groundbreaking and effective learning methods. CAP is the leader in shaping driver instruction and is making an impact on the whole sector. In 2019 CAP-Group Oy has about 330 satisfied employees and several contracted instructors in addition to the great numbers of happy customers. www.cap.fi

Verdane is a Nordic growth investment company, which invests in technology driven growth companies through its funds. Verane has about 50 employees in Helsinki, Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Berlin and London. www.verdane.com