31st January 2017
FPE Capital, the leading UK growth capital investor, has sold its portfolio company Ticketscript to Eventbrite, the world’s largest ticketing and event technology platform. FPE Capital invested in 2014, providing growth capital to address the substantial market opportunity in mid-sized events.
Ticketscript has grown to become the leading pan-European self-service ticketing provider, with over €150m of tickets sold in 2016 across five countries. The transaction reflects the strong market position that Ticketscript has built as a highly disruptive player throughout Europe. The company’s reputation of allowing event organisers to control their event marketing and ticketing, whilst retaining their end customer data matches Eventbrite’s 10-year philosophy serving their organisers in 180 countries. The combined local market presence will not only accelerate Eventbrite’s efforts in Europe, particularly with music festivals and venues, but also provide Ticketscript with Eventbrite’s global reach and scale.
FPE Capital, with other Ticketscript shareholders, will receive shares in Eventbrite, alongside cash consideration, to enable it to benefit from the continuing rapid growth of the global category leader.
Eventbrite is providing a disruptive solution to the mid-market of live experiences on a global basis, operating in over 180 countries and supporting over 2 million events a year. Founded in 2006 by Julia and Kevin Hartz, and Renaud Visage, Eventbrite is headquartered in San Francisco, US, and is backed by Sequoia Capital, T. Rowe Price and Tiger Global Management, among others.
Commenting on the transaction, Frans Jonker, CEO of Ticketscript, said: “This deal rewards Ticketscript’s strategy to build a powerful European presence in self-service ticketing. The combination with Eventbrite will see the business become part of the largest self-service ticketing platform globally and provides investors with the chance to benefit from the further value creation in the enlarged group.”
Henry Sallitt, Managing Partner at FPE, commented: "We have really enjoyed working alongside Frans and his team at Ticketscript over the last two years. We identified Eventbrite as a natural buyer for the business at the time of our investment, and are looking forward to realising further value in the enlarged business. This transaction further validates our strategy of investing in growth companies in large markets with robust and scalable business models”
Randy Befumo, CFO of Eventbrite, said: “We have been very impressed with the business that Frans and the Ticketscript team have built and are pleased to put our knowledge and capital behind them. We’ve seen impressive growth in Europe, and believe this to be an important step in accelerating our footprint as we continue to grow Eventbrite as a global platform for live experiences.”
The shareholders of Ticketscript were advised by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and Bond Dickinson LLP.
For further information, please contact FPE Capital:
Henry Sallitt, Managing Partner
t. +44 (0)20 7036 5747 | e. henry.sallitt@fpecapital.com
Llewellyn John, Partner
t. +44 (0)20 7036 5658 | e. llewellyn.john@fpecapital.com
FPE Capital LLP is a growth private equity investor into UK lower mid-market companies. It targets businesses with advantaged business models that offer significant growth potential in large markets undergoing structural change. It is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. www.fpecapital.com