The SER Group, the largest ECM vendor in Europe, has been acquired by global alternative asset manager The Carlyle Group. Carlyle's expertise and network will support SER in sustaining its long-term growth.

Global alternative asset manager The Carlyle Group acquired a stake in SERgroup Holding International GmbH (SER), a leading European Enterprise Content Management (ECM) software vendor, both companies announced today. Underlining their commitment to continuity, the selling shareholders retain a significant minority stake in SER. The transaction is complete. Further details were not disclosed.

Headquartered in Bonn, Germany, SER started out as the pioneer for electronic archiving to become the leading European vendor for state-of-the-art ECM solutions. Founded in 1984, the company is committed to innovation, highly customizable and scalable solutions, as well as excellent client service. SER’s software suite iECM Doxis is available in 14 official languages and 136 countries. SER’s long-term success and strong profitability provide a solid foundation for sustainable business development in a market segment where enduring reliability in combination with innovation and state-of-the-art technology determine the value for the customer.

Carlyle will work with SER’s management team to facilitate continued stable growth, both nationally and internationally. Furthermore, Carlyle will be able to accelerate growth by providing SER with additional growth capital.

Dr. Thorsten Dippel, Managing Director at Carlyle Europe Technology Partners (CETP), says: “We look forward to working with the SER management team, whose strong focus on customers and innovation is outstanding. With our deep knowledge of the software sector and our international Carlyle network, we are pleased to support SER during its next phase of growth.“

Kurt-Werner Sikora, spokesman for SER’s management board, comments: “In Carlyle we have found an excellent partner for the continued successful development of SER. After the appointment of the new executive team, we are pleased to have found the ideal partner for the next step in our succession planning who has longstanding and broad experience in the areas relevant to SER.” The “new/old” SERgroup Holding International GmbH management team have been familiar faces for many years: Sven Behrendt, COO at SER for more than 20 years, Johannes Breuers, CFO at SER for more than 10 years, Dr. Gregor Joeris, CTO at SER for 18 years now and Kurt-Werner Sikora remains spokesman for SER’s management board.    

Equity for the investment will come from Carlyle Europe Technology Partners III (CETP III), a €657 million pan-European growth fund focused on technology companies, launched in 2015. The CETP team has extensive experience in the management of technology companies, both globally, as well as in German-speaking countries.

Previous investments by CETP funds include: P&I Personal & Informatik AG, a provider of integrated HR software solutions; Exocad, a developer of CAD/CAM software for the dental industry; vwd, a provider of market data and innovative applications for banks and investment advisors; kcs.net, one of the largest independent Microsoft Dynamics partners in the DACH market; and UC4, a software provider in the area of data center and process automation.

Since 2002, CETP funds have invested €1.4 billion in small and medium-sized businesses and supported their growth plans.

The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) is a global alternative asset manager with $212 billion of assets under management across 339 investment vehicles as of September 30, 2018. Carlyle’s purpose is to invest wisely and create value on behalf of its investors, many of whom are public pensions. Carlyle invests across four segments – Corporate Private Equity, Real Assets, Global Credit and Investment Solutions – in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, North America and South America. Carlyle has expertise in various industries, including: aerospace, defense & government services, consumer & retail, energy, financial services, healthcare, industrial, real estate, technology & business services, telecommunications & media and transportation. The Carlyle Group employs more than 1,625 people in 31 offices across six continents.

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