Monday 19 June 2017

Change of Ownership at QA Group

After 10 years of ownership, Bregal Investments have agreed to sell QA Group to Fund VI, managed by CVC Capital Partners.

With more than 5,000 corporate and public sector clients, and offering more than 1,500 courses, QA are one of the UK's leading provider of IT education and skills providers operating under a number of brands, including QA Learning, QA Apprenticeships, QA Consulting, and QA Higher Education.

William Macpherson, CEO of QA said:
"Over the last 10 years QA has expanded rapidly to become the UK’s leading IT education and skills provider. This success has been achieved through the hard work of our employees and a deep partnership with Edmund Lazarus and his team. This relationship has helped steer QA’s significant development and enabled us to deliver innovative skills and talent solutions to our customers. Together with Bregal/EMK we have achieved exceptional growth, and I am looking forward to forging an equally successful partnership with CVC. Their record of supporting expansion, together with their UK and international reach provides QA with a significant platform for success as we seek to execute our ambitious growth plans."

The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed, but it's noted in the formal announcement that Barclays Bank has underwritten 100% of the debt financing for the transaction.

QA's management team will retain a significant stake in the company.

Read the official announcement.