Leeds Equity Partners Sells Evanta Ventures
Knowledge Industries focused private equity firm sells leading provider of executive development and collaboration solutions
New York, USA — April 29, 2016. Leeds Equity Partners, LLC (“Leeds Equity”), the New York-based private equity fund focused exclusively on investing in the Knowledge Industries, announced today that it closed the sale of Evanta Ventures, Inc. (“Evanta” or the “Company”) for $275 million, subject to customary working capital and other price adjustments as provided in the definitive transaction agreement, to CEB, Inc. Leeds Equity acquired Evanta in 2012 in partnership with Bob Dethlefs, the Founder of Evanta.
“On behalf of the Evanta management team, I would like to thank Leeds Equity for their partnership and counsel as we worked to accelerate our growth and further solidify our value proposition to our constituents,” said Bob Dethlefs, Evanta Founder and CEO. “Leeds provided highly valuable strategic guidance and access to their deep network of advisors, which helped Evanta develop new and highly compelling solutions for our customers.”
“We are proud to have partnered with Bob and his team and look forward to watching them continue to drive exceptional outcomes for executives at leading corporations,” said Jacques Galante, a Managing Director at Leeds Equity. “Bob and his management team have demonstrated a unique combination of strategic vision and operational excellence that has enabled the Company to significantly broaden its engagement with C-Suite communities. Evanta is extremely well positioned to continue to drive meaningful collaboration and knowledge exchange amongst Fortune 2000 companies and has found a great partner in CEB.”
Scott VanHoy, a Managing Director at Leeds Equity, continued, “We were very fortunate to partner with Bob and his talented team at Evanta. It was a pleasure to work in concert with the Company on a shared vision to build a preeminent provider of information and training solutions that make leaders better at their jobs.”
Evanta represents one of Leeds Equity’s many information services investments. Other current and historical investments in the sector include Covenant Review, a provider of proprietary research, data and analytics, and news to investors and advisors across the capital structure, and Ex Libris, a leading provider of automation solutions for academic, research, and national libraries.
The Jordan, Edmiston Group, Inc. served as financial advisor and Goodwin Procter LLP served as legal counsel to Evanta.
About Leeds Equity:
Leeds Equity Partners, LLC, is a New York-based private equity firm focused exclusively on investing in the education, training and information services industries (the “Knowledge Industries”). The firm was founded by Jeffrey T. Leeds and Robert A. Bernstein in 1993 and has raised and managed more than $1.1 billion of capital across five funds.
The Board of Advisors of Leeds Equity Partners includes, among others: Chairman General Colin L. Powell, former Secretary of State, National Security Advisor, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Vice Chairman Gaston Caperton, former President of The College Board and two-term governor of West Virginia; Tim J. Fitzpatrick, former CEO of Sallie Mae Corporation; Thomas F. (Mack) McLarty III, President of McLarty Associates and former White House Chief of Staff under President William J. Clinton; Dr. Barry A. Munitz, former Chancellor of the California State University school system and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust; Richard W. Riley, former Secretary of Education under President William J. Clinton and two-term Governor of South Carolina; Alex Ross, former Senior Advisor for Innovation to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; and Timothy P. Shriver, Chairman of the Board of the Special Olympics.
For additional information on Leeds Equity Partners, please see http://www.leedsequity.com/