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Case Study - Disposal of 8el

Date: January 2013
Sector: IT Services
James Cowper Kreston Team: Stuart Williams

Aggregated Telecoms Limited, trading as 8el is a leading networking, connectivity, voice and hosted telephony service provider to over 40,000 users across the UK from its base in Reading, Berkshire.

James Cowper Kreston Corporate Finance were engaged to seek an exit for the incumbent investors which measured in excess of 200. Having successfully marketed the business for sale they received several attractive offers for the Company were received. Selection Services Limited, backed by Palatine Private Equity were identified as the preferred bidder. Selection Services is a UK wide provider of managed IT services.

The James Cowper Kreston team's deal management skills were brought to the fore during this transaction given both the complexity of the deal itself and the wide array of both equity and debt investors within 8el at the time of completion.

The deal was eventually completed by way of scheme of arrangement in January 2013 - believed to be the first transaction concluded using this method in the UK. Due to the anticipated difficulty in obtaining 100% acceptance of the deal from the large number of loan note holders and shareholders, some of which were no longer in contact with the Company.

James Cowper Kreston worked closely with the lawyers and provided substantial input into the legal documentation to ensure the Vendors' exit value was maximised and protected.

The transaction proved James Cowper Kreston's integrated approach to Corporate Finance involving specialists from across the firms various departments to ensure that a successful outcome was achieved.

Justin Hamilton-Martin, Managing Director of 8el, commented: “I would like to thank James Cowper Kreston’s Corporate Finance team for the way they managed the transaction. The commitment, skills and experience they brought to the table were invaluable. Without them, this extremely complex deal would not have completed.”