Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A)
Our extensive deal history enables us to provide high-quality M&A services to strategic and/or financial shareholders, management teams, supervisory boards, and works councils. We advise our clients in all stages of the transaction process; i.e. from identifying potential M&A opportunities to the structuring and negotiating of final transaction- and financing terms. By doing so, we aim to – if desired by the customer – fully unburden our clients and at the same time act as sounding board and project manager before, during (and after) the transaction. Chestnut’s in-depth market knowledge and international network through Socius, enables us to provide both domestic and cross-border services.
Our M&A services include:
- Sell-side: sale of companies from a full strategic sale to management buy-outs and carve-outs
- Buy-side: acquisition of companies & special business activities
- Strategic alliances
- Shareholders restructuring
- Special and confidential roles in large cap transactions like advising (central) work councils
M&A transactions

Works Council Advisory Services

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the Works Council
Omschrijving
Tata Steel is one of Europe’s leading steel producers, with steelmaking in the UK and Netherlands, and manufacturing plants across Europe. The company supplies high-quality strip steel products to demanding markets such as construction, automotive, packaging and engineering. Tata Steel Netherlands (TSN) produces and delivers over 7 million tonnes of flat steel on an annual basis. TSN employs over 11.000 people, of which over 9.000 at the fully integrated site and value chain in IJmuiden. The Central Works Council (CWC) of TSN is tasked with providing advice to the company, for a.o. strategic decisions with a material impact on the employees of TSN.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the Central Works Council of Tata Steel Europe.

Works Council Advisory Services

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the Works Council
Omschrijving
Smallsteps provides childcare services and is with over 250 childcare centres, one of the biggest childcare providers in the Netherlands. The Works Council of Smallsteps is (legally) tasked with providing advice to the company, for a.o. strategic decisions with a material impact on the employees of Smallsteps
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the Works Council of Partou Kinderopvang & Smallsteps / KidsFoundation.

€2.7m capital raise

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to Payaut
Omschrijving
Payaut is an Amsterdam based start-up company focused on simplifying payment infrastructure on online platforms. The company automates the payment & onboarding processes, thereby unburdening platforms with a time consuming task. In addition to automatizing the onboarding and payment processes Payaut ensures full compliance with PSD2 regulation. Payaut is compatible with all payment service providers.
Chestnut acted as the exclusive financial advisor to the shareholders of Payaut, resulting in the raising of €2.7m growth capital from a consortium of private investors.

Valuation analysis

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to Bonarius
Omschrijving
Bonarius is specialised in the instellation and maintenance of CV – instelletations. Currently the company is employed to maintain over 200,000 central heating systems from housing corporations and commercial real estate companies. In addition, the company acts as sustainability advisor in the field of energy instellations.
Chestnut acted as advisor to Bonarius in the transfer of company shares, which included a detailed valuation analysis.

Acquisition

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the Works Council of Smallsteps
Omschrijving
Smallsteps provides childcare services and is with over 250 childcare centres, one of the biggest childcare providers in the Netherlands. The Works Council of Smallsteps is (legally) tasked with providing advice to the company, for a.o. strategic decisions with a material impact on the employees of Smallsteps
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the Works Council of Smallsteps during the request for advice from Smallsteps, regarding the acquisition of KidsFoundation Holdings (including Smallsteps) and Partou Kinderopvang by Onex and Waterland.

Acquisition of the GoodNRG Group by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to GoodNRG
Omschrijving
GoodFuels is a sustainable fuels pioneer and energy transition partner for the marine industry and heavy transportation. The biofuels from GoodFuels are immediately applicable as substitution for fossil fuels, thereby reducing CO2 up to 90%. In addition GoodNRG introduces innovative sustainable products, services and business models on a regular basis.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the GoodNRG Group and its shareholders, resulting in the sale of the group to FinCo Fuel Group, a portfolio company of Coloured Finches.

Acquisition of Urban Arrow by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to Urban Arrow
Omschrijving
Urban Arrow is a Dutch manufacturer of electronically driven cargo bikes that aims to be the frontrunner in urban mobility.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to Urban Arrow and its shareholder, resulting in the sale of the company to Pon Bike (part of Pon Holdings), a substantial player in the bicycle market.

Acquisition of DatacenterNext by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to DatacenterNext
Omschrijving
DatacenterNext is a full fledged Cloud Managed Service Provider, which manages its clients’ entire operational IT platform. Services include infrastructure and platform services, as well as designing the client’s IT transformational strategy.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to DatacenterNext and its shareholder, resulting in the sale of the company to Strikwerda Investments, a family office investment firm founded in 2000.

Acquisition of e-Village by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to e-Village
Omschrijving
e-Village is a leading email marketing agency in The Netherlands. With an inhouse developed state-of-the-art email marketing software (Clang) and a team of 70 email specialists, the company helps its clients to increase the effectiveness of marketing campagnes and customer contact moments.
Inspired Thinking Group (ITG) is a specialist marketing services and technology business that helps major brands and retailers improve the efficiency, speed, cost and control of their marketing operations. ITG employs almost 600 people and is headquartered in Birmingham, UK.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the management and shareholders of e-Village during the transaction, resulting in the sale of e-Village to ITG, a portfolio company of Equistone.

Acquisition of TCN Datahotels by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to TCN Datahotels
Omschrijving
QTS Realty Trust, a stock exchange listed (NYSE) leading provider of software-defined and mega scale data center solutions, has acquired the two data centers of TCN Datahotels. The asset deal comprises one data center in Eemshaven and one in Groningen, for a purchase price totaling USD 44m.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to TCN’s management and other stakeholders, resulting in the sale of the two datacenters to QTS.

Acquisition of Arttic by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to PNO
Omschrijving
ARTTIC is a European market leader in consultancy and management services for research and technological development. With its long-standing experience in financing programs in various scientific and technological areas, ARTTIC assist her clients to move from strategic plans to effective competitive operations. The company has multiple offices in North-West Europe, with its headquarters located in Paris.
PNO offers a wide range of subsidy, innovation and compliance services and is strongly positioned in the sectors life sciences & health, energy, climate & environment. In the Netherlands, PNO is among others market leader in the area of R&D subsidies (WBSO-dienstverlening).
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the management and shareholders of PNO in the transaction, resulting in the acquisition of ARTTIC.

Acquisition of Nimsys by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to Nimsys
Omschrijving
Nimsys manages networks and provides internet, VoIP telecom and other IT services to renters of multi tenant buildings.
Chestnut advised the shareholders of Nimsys during the proces of selling Nimsys B.V. to a subsidiary of Gamma Communications PLC, a listed British telecom and internet provider.

Acquisition of Swagemakers by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to Swagemakers
Omschrijving
Swagemakers Intermodaal Transport (Swagemakers) is an intermodal transport and logistics provider with ca. 30 – 40 employees, strategically located in the North Sea Port (Westdorpe). The Company has a strong footprint in bulk and liquid goods, with a long-standing client portfolio.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to Swagemakers and its shareholder in the sales process resulting in the sale of a majority stake to Trimodal Container Terminal Terneuzen (3-MCT).
Acquisition of Graydon Incasso by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to Graydon
Omschrijving
Graydon is a business information provider in the field of financial information, marketing information, risk & compliance and debt collection. The debt collection activities mainly comprise amicable and international debt collection services.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the management of Graydon in the sales process resulting in the sale of the Dutch debt collection activities to Ultimoo.

Acquisition

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the Works Council of Smallsteps
Omschrijving
Smallsteps provides childcare services and is with 250 childcare centres, one of the biggest childcare providers in the Netherlands. The Works Council of Smallsteps is (legally) tasked with providing advice to the company, for a.o. strategic decisions with a material impact on the employees of Smallsteps
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the Works Council of Smallsteps during the request for advice from Smallsteps, regarding the acquisition of Smallsteps by Onex. Onex is a reputable listed (Toronto Stock Exchange) Canadian private equity firm with over $32 billion of assets under management.

Acquisition of Lumat by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to Lumat
Omschrijving
Lumat is a leading distributor of high tenacity yarns, such as Polyester, Polyamide, Aramid and Synthetic continuous filament yarns that are used in ropes, strappings and fabrics. Over the last twenty years, Lumat has become the principal distributor of industrial yarns in Europe, Africa and the Americas.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the shareholders and management of Lumat in the sales process resulting in the sale of Lumat to Active Capital Company.

Acquisition of Hedera Consulting (NL) by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the shareholders of the Dutch entity of Hedera Consulting
Omschrijving
Hedera Consulting, having its offices located in Belgium (HQ) and the Netherlands, is a consulting firm with its main focus on company advice and data analysis. The company serves clients in a.o. Italy, Switzerland, Scandinavia, the UK and the Middle-East. The company’s expertise include growth strategy, innovation, marketing, sales and customers service.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the shareholders of the Dutch entity in the sales process resulting in the sale of Hedera Consulting to Cognizant.

Acquisition of Golden Age Cheese Store by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to Westland Kaas Groep
Omschrijving
Golden Age Cheese Store (“GACS” and / or the “Company”) has developed a unique retail formula to sell cheese as souvenir package. The Company is located on 3 locations in city-centre of Amsterdam. Westland Kaas Groep (“WKG”) focuses on development, marketing and sales of (its own) branded cheese products. Two examples of its own cheese brands are Old Amsterdam and Maaslander.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to Westland Kaas Groep with the preparation and acquisition of Golden Age Cheese Store.

Acquisition of a minority stake in Dynamic Credit by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to Dynamic Credit
Omschrijving
Dynamic Credit is an alternative fixed income asset management firm that manages (securities of) loans of others and its own proprietary direct lending. In 2015, Dynamic Credit set up the first online mortgage distribution platform of the Netherlands (bijBouwe) and in June 2016 they launched the platform LoanClear, a marketplace for loan portfolios.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the shareholder and management of Dynamic Credit during the sale of a minority equity stake to Aegon, a leading financial services organization, providing life insurance, pensions and asset management.

Acquisition of Bridgevest by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to Bridgevest
Omschrijving
Bridgevest is a SaaS and consultancy provider for the Wealth and Retirement Management sector and provides its clients – currently mainly pension funds – in-house developed software tools allowing them to make the step to a client-centric, technology focused and (big) data driven business model.
Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the shareholders and management resulting in the sale of their share capital to Keylane, a portfolio company of private equity firm Waterland.

Acquisition of Fortytwo and Redbee by Internedservices

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the shareholders of Fortytwo and Redbee
Omschrijving
Redbee focuses primarily on (managed) hosting activities, including PCI DSS compliant hosting, a security standard that is mandatory for creditcard service providers. The company is experienced in designing, building and managing secure and scalable environments. Fortytwo specializes in consultancy, management and audit activities in comparable segments as Redbee, mainly focused on security, networks and information architectures.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the shareholders of Fortytwo and Redbee in the sales process resulting in the acquisition of the companies by Internetservices , the leading IT & cloud services provider in the Netherlands.

Acquisition of a majority stake in Jan Snel by Parcom Capital

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the shareholders and management of Jan Snel
Omschrijving
Jan Snel provides a wide range of flexible, modular (semi-)permanent building solutions for a.o. industry applications, healthcare, education, student and refugee housing with a leading market position in the Benelux, next to its special-purpose transportation division.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the shareholders and management of Jan Snel during the sale of a majority equity stake to Parcom Capital, a leading mid-market private equity firm active in the Benelux.

Acquisition of AFoM & SD by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to AFoM & SD
Omschrijving
A friend of mine (AFoM) is a digital agency engaged in social media marketing, specifically focused on Facebook advertising. AFoM realises Facebook campaigns for clients including Philips, Friesland Campina, Nationale Nederlanden and Hunkemöller from concept to execution. Second Degree (SD) is market leader in LinkedIn marketing in the Netherlands.
Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the shareholders of AFoM and SD resulting in the sale of their share capital to TamTam, a portfolio company of private equity firm Waterland.

Acquisition of Code P West by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the shareholders of Code P West
Omschrijving
Code P West (CPW) focuses on development and creation of assembled industrial products. These products are usually made of synthetic material, metal, fine sheet metal, precision engineering and electronics. In addition, the company produces and sells custom-made 3D printers.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to CPW and its shareholders resulting in a Management Buy-Out (“MBO”) / sale of the Company to a private investor and management.

Acquisition of Digidentity (DDY) by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the founding shareholder of DDY
Omschrijving
Digidentity provides end-to-end identity certification solutions for businesses and consumers that engage anywhere online. DDY’s high-assurance validation and authentication systems create secure environments for digital transactions across industries that include banking and insurance, transportation and logistics, government services, regulatory affairs, and electronic commerce.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the founding shareholder of DDY, resulting in a strategic sale to Solera (a global leader in data and software for automotive, home ownership and identity management), who has been a minority shareholder since 2010.

Acquisition of Poppers by

Chestnut acted as financial advisor to the shareholders of Poppers
Omschrijving
Poppers provides a wide range of fasteners (staples, collated nails & screws and metric fasteners) and related power tools to the construction, automotive, packaging and furniture industry.
Chestnut acted as exclusive financial advisor to the shareholders of Poppers during the sales process resulting in the acquisition of the company by Senco.