AIM Group was focussed on the provision of business software and solutions to professionals. It had customers at more than 400 law firms, local authorities, consulting firms and outsourcers.

The private equity backers of AIM, namely Dunedin Capital Partners and Alliance Trust, were seeking to realise their investment. FirstCapital were selected from the beauty parade because of its deep understanding of enterprise software and access to potential acquirers.

The legal software market was mature with a number of players of a similar size and stable market shares. After examining the market, FirstCapital recognised that there was an opportunity to execute a roll up in the space to create a dominant player and that AIM Group would be an excellent platform to execute that strategy. FirstCapital worked with closely with the management of AIM Group to articulate this strategy and then targeted both trade and private equity buyers. AIM Group received offers from 4 groups. We moved into exclusivity with Computer Software Group plc (CS Group), the AIM listed software group, and concluded a definitive agreement to sell AIM Group in May 2006.

CS Group then went on to execute the roll up strategy in legal software and was subsequently taken private by Hg Capital in a £90m transaction. CSG then merged with Iris and was bought by Hellman and  Friedman in a £500m deal.

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Testimonials

"FirstCapital is a rare breed: an investment bank which combines a deep understanding of positioning technology companies, with a highly efficient process to get deals done well. It is unusual to find a group who truly drives both, to deliver maximum value to shareholders."
Tina Rogers, Chairman AIM Group