New funds will enable EcoVadis to further strengthen its position as the leading provider of sustainability ratings, intelligence and engagement solutions globally
NEW YORK, LONDON and PARIS – January 9, 2020 — EcoVadis SAS, (“EcoVadis” or the “Company”), the world leader in business sustainability ratings for global supply chains, today announced that it has agreed to a c. $200 million investment from CVC Growth Partners II (“CVC Growth Partners”). This transaction represents one of the largest investments in the ESG space to date and reflects a shared long-term vision for the importance of ESG to business success. EcoVadis will leverage the funding to scale globally and ingrain sustainability, fair labor practices and ethics into enterprise supply chains and business commerce.
“The combination of global sustainability initiatives, evolving compliance regulations and corporate purpose commitments are putting a new and urgent spotlight on the supply chain – and creating an immense and growing market for our solutions,” said Frédéric Trinel, co-founder and co-CEO of EcoVadis. “CVC’s global network and reach will play a critical role in helping us scale and change the way businesses operate.”
“Momentum towards a more environmentally and societally focused economy has been building for years. Today’s executives recognize the power of sustainability to protect their brands, increase valuation, inform investment strategies and positively impact the world,” said Pierre-Francois Thaler, co-CEO and co-founder of EcoVadis. “The supply chain is the single greatest lever for creating real change and making an impact. But when left unmanaged, it becomes a breeding ground for hidden risk – including forced labor, environmental waste, corruption, security issues and more. This investment from CVC Growth Partners is a testament to the critical role that ESG and sustainability factors play in today’s market.”
More than 450 enterprises – representing over $2.5 trillion in business spending – rely on EcoVadis’ supplier ratings and engagement platform to evaluate and improve environmental and social performance across their global supply chains. EcoVadis’ evidence-based assessment methodology, delivered via a sophisticated SaaS platform and backed by a dedicated team of CSR analysts, is the most trusted and adopted approach in the industry. Today, EcoVadis’ network of assessed companies tops 60,000 across 155 countries.
Ilian Mihov, Dean of INSEAD and keynote speaker at the upcoming EcoVadis Sustain 2020 event in March, said, “Today, the risks associated with environmental degradation, climate change and social upheaval lead us to believe that sustainability solutions are the only path to healthy long-term growth. Measuring sustainability in companies and their supply chains can accelerate the transition to innovative new business models that are both profitable and good for people and the planet. When INSEAD engages with CEOs, leading banks and asset managers, we hear an increasing number of investors, companies and consumers considering business and social outcomes in decisions. The EcoVadis and CVC partnership holds great potential to make value chains more sustainable, provide more complete information to investors on social and environmental responsibility and empower more companies to be a force for good.”
EcoVadis continues to experience rapid growth across its global customer base. In 2019 the Company added 10,000 companies to its network and opened new offices in Tokyo, San Francisco and Melbourne. EcoVadis plans to leverage the funding to expand internationally, break into new countries and further invest in its technology platform, sustainability intelligence solutions and network of rated companies.
Aaron Dupuis, Senior Managing Director at CVC Growth Partners commented, “We are delighted to partner with Frédéric, Pierre-Francois and the rest of the EcoVadis team in this next phase of growth for the Company. We have followed EcoVadis for several years as part of our long-standing efforts in supply chain risk management, where we identified ESG as a particular area of focus for best-in-class companies, and are incredibly excited about the immense opportunities that lie ahead for the Company, as it continues to establish itself as the gold standard for ESG ratings. This is the first investment from CVC Growth Partners’ second fund, which announced its final close late last year.”
“Environmental, social and governance issues are critical to business success, economic growth and societal improvement,” said Sebastian Kuenne, Managing Director who leads CVC Growth Partners in Europe. “At the core of CVC’s approach to building better businesses is always a detailed sustainable value creation plan that is anchored in fundamental ESG principles. EcoVadis’ unique assessment platform and expansive supplier network are proven to improve sustainability outcomes and accelerate business performance. We are proud to partner with a team that provides meaningful value not only to their customers but also to broader society and our environment and are excited to support EcoVadis with the full weight of the CVC network.”
John Clark, Managing Partner of CVC Growth Partners, Aaron Dupuis and Sebastian Kuenne will be joining EcoVadis’ board of directors.
“EcoVadis is fast becoming the world-leading platform for supplier ESG ratings, and Partech is very excited to continue the journey with the company and its founders, and to welcome our new partner CVC,” added Omri Benayoun, General Partner at Partech and a board member of EcoVadis since 2016.
The transaction is expected to close in Q1 2020 following regulatory approvals.
For more information, visit ecovadis.com.
About EcoVadis
EcoVadis is the world’s most trusted provider of business sustainability ratings, intelligence and collaborative performance improvement tools for global supply chains. Backed by a powerful technology platform and a global team of domain experts, EcoVadis’ easy-to-use and actionable sustainability scorecards provide detailed insight into environmental, social and ethical risks across 198 purchasing categories and 155 countries. Industry leaders such as Johnson & Johnson, Verizon, L’Oréal, Subway, Nestlé, Salesforce, Michelin and BASF are among the more than 60,000 businesses on the EcoVadis network, all working with a single methodology to evaluate, collaborate and improve sustainability performance in order to protect their brands, foster transparency and innovation, and accelerate growth. Learn more on ecovadis.com, Twitter or LinkedIn.
GP Bullhound acted as financial advisor to EcoVadis and its shareholders.
About CVC Capital Partners
CVC is a leading private equity and investment advisory firm. Founded in 1981, CVC today has a network of 24 offices and over 500 employees throughout Europe, Asia and the US. To date, CVC has secured commitments of over US$129 billion from some of the world’s leading institutional investors across its private equity and credit strategies. In total, CVC currently manages approximately US$83 billion of assets. Today, funds managed or advised by CVC are invested in 73 companies worldwide, employing over 300,000 people in numerous countries. Together, these companies have combined annual sales of approximately US$100 billion. For further information about CVC please visit: www.cvc.com.
About CVC Growth Partners
Launched in 2014, CVC Growth Partners is the growth-oriented middle-market technology investment arm of CVC Capital Partners. CVC Growth Partners primarily targets equity investments between $50 million and $250 million in North America and Europe and manages over US$2.5 billion in assets across two dedicated funds. For further information about CVC Growth Partners please visit: www.cvc.com/growth.
Goldman Sachs acted as financial advisor to CVC Growth Partners.
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