BC PARTNERS takes majority stake in GardaWorld Security

BC Partners has signed a definitive agreement to take control of GardaWorld. Finalized as a massive structural recapitalization, this transaction establishes an overall valuation corresponding to an . The execution of this definitive share purchase agreement officially orchestrates the complete exit of the historical financial sponsor, Rhône Group, which successfully concludes a three-year holding cycle initiated in 2016. Under the rigorously negotiated capital restructuring, the incoming institutional backer, BC Partners, will capture a 51 percent majority stake in the common equity of the security services provider. Simultaneously, the remaining 49 percent equity block will be securely held by the founding executive alongside select members of the internal management team, ensuring strict operational continuity and enduring leadership alignment. Characterized by the acquiring board as the largest private buyout in Canadian history, this transaction is specifically engineered to provide fresh institutional capital to fuel the target's next phase of global expansion and support targeted consolidation within the fragmented security sector. To execute this complex cross-border leveraged buyout, the acquiring financial sponsor secured comprehensive debt financing commitments directly provided by a prominent banking syndicate comprising JPMorgan Chase Bank, Bank of America, Barclays, and TD Securities. Throughout the competitive transaction process, the sell-side execution was actively supported by financial advisors Barclays and TD Securities, while legal structuring for the target was exclusively managed by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP and Séguin, Racine LLC. Conversely, the incoming private equity buyer retained Scotiabank to provide specialized financial advisory services, alongside the law firms Kirkland and Ellis LLP and Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, which managed the complex multijurisdictional legal perimeters. Subject to the fulfillment of customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, the definitive completion of this landmark transaction is officially anticipated by late 2019.

In the past, the company had already been the subject of several LBOs, notably led by Apax Partners in 2012 and Rhone Capital in 2016. This succession of buyouts highlights the strong attractiveness of the company's business model.