The global ship management sector is about to make a big splash: V.Group, the largest provider in this segment, is about to be taken over by new owners.
The financial investor Star Capital (London) has set up a new fund to raise the money for the purchase of V.Group. Other investors include Ackermans & van Haaren. The previous owner of V.Group is Advent International, also a financial investor; before that, it was Omers Private Equity until 2016.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to be completed in early fall 2024, according to a statement. No further details were initially provided regarding the financial terms.
V.Group is the world’s leading provider of technical management services for shipping companies. It currently manages around 3,500 ships. The portfolio also includes crewing with a personnel pool of 44,000 seafarers and other services relating to ship operations.
V.Group manages a fleet of 3,500 ships
The company is headquartered in London. The 50 branches in 30 countries with a total of around 2,900 employees also include the branch in Hamburg, which is managed by Ulla Eithz Nielsen and was created from the takeover of Norddeutsche Reederei H. Schuldt six years ago.
“V.Group fits perfectly into Star Capital’s investment strategy as it is the market leader in a highly fragmented market,” says Aditya Bindal, Partner at Star.
Discussions with the management of V.Group have been initiated. “We want to provide the capital to drive the progress made to date,” says Paul Gough, Managing Partner of Star.
This is the US investor’s fourth investment in the maritime industry. Star Capital was previously the owner of the Blohm+Voss shipyard in Hamburg (2012-2016 ) and has also invested in the stock market vehicle MPC Container Ships in Oslo.
Just a few days ago, it was announced that Björn Sprotte had resigned from his position as ship management CEO at V.Group on 1 June and joined Bernhard Schulte.
Since its foundation, the Star Group has built up more than 28 companies with a total value of over €10bn through more than 100 acquisitions. As a rule, investments are made in companies with an enterprise value of between €50m and €1bn.
