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About us

Prudentia Capital is an independent and privately-owned asset management firm based in Paris, licensed by the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF), supporting the growth of established French and European small and mid-sized companies.

Our philosophy is based on a close relationship with management teams, a strong entrepreneurial spirit, and a firm commitment to transparency and accountability.

We strive to create value for both entrepreneurs and investors by doing the fieldwork necessary to identify opportunities that are a match for our expertise.

Our small cap strategic value funds are focused on a specific market niche where significant value creation opportunities exist, outside of the classic intermediated LBO market. We create long term partnerships with successful small and medium-sized companies and their management teams that have financial, strategic and operational needs that we can creatively deliver, unlocking the path for them to become leading national and international companies.

Our approach

We take into consideration the entire economical and social environment our companies

TARGET SIZE €10–100 MILLION IN ANNUAL REVENUE
We invest in small and medium-sized companies because we believe this is where funding and managerial support can have the greatest impact, creating value, strengthening communities and contributing to the economy as a whole.
EQUITY TICKET €2–30 MILLION PER TRANSACTION
We look for strategic opportunities among businesses facing a wide range of situations, including family successions, governance issues, equity increases, spin-offs, or fund raising for growth and specific growth projects. Our investment approach favors the transformation and growth of companies.
RELATIONSHIP FOCUSED
We are committed to working closely with management during every phase of the investment process. This ensures we understand the fundamentals of each business and can provide the benefit of our team’s extensive experience to promote best practices in a context of mutual respect.
A STRONG ENTREPRENEURIAL, MANAGERIAL AND OPERATIONAL EXPERTISE
The Prudentia Capital team has a strong entrepreneurial, managerial and operational expertise, combined with significant experience in the public and public-private sector. This comprehensive view gives us unique insight and tools to actively transform and develop companies.
STRONG INTERNATIONAL PROFILE
Our partners represent three different nationalities (French, German, American), and this is reflected in our desire to support access to international markets for the companies we invest in. Through our partner network we currently have representative offices in New York and Berlin in addition to our head office in Paris.
Prudentia Capital teamPrudentia Capital team

Meet the team

Founders

ROLAND GERMAIN
Founding partner
Linkedin

Roland brings more than 30 years of key leadership experience, at Bouygues, Vivendi and as CEO of the Geoxia group from 1995 to 2012. Roland acquired this €150 million revenue company from the Vivendi group through an LBO operation and proceeded to build a market-leading powerhouse building 10,000 homes, employing 3,500 people and generating €800 million in revenue by 2008. In addition to the company’s organic growth, Roland conducted numerous successful acquisitions over the years to consolidate the market. Throughout his 30 years of management experience, Roland has led companies through many economic cycles, including phases of growth and consolidation as well as turnaround. Roland is a French national and graduated from Paris X with a doctorate in production economics.

DOMINIK ZWERGER
Founding partner
Linkedin

Dominik has accompanied small and medium sized companies and their management teams since more than 10 years.

Dominik gained significant investment experience as an investor for a prominent French PE fund (2010 to 2017) and also as a lead negotiator for the specialized arm of the French Ministry for the Economy and Finance that oversees underperforming companies requiring financial recapitalization and strategic and operational change. During his time at the CIRI (2007-2010), he negotiated and signed 20+ refinancing deals for small and medium-sized companies. Dominik began his career as a financial analyst in London, first at RCI Banque and then at Barclays Capital. Dominik is a German national who has lived in France for over 25 years.

He is a graduate of ESCP Europe and the École Nationale d'Administration (ENA).

Strategic Committee

Ulf Gartzke
International Relations and Strategic Alliances
Linkedin

Dr. Ulf Gartzke is Managing Partner at Spitzberg Partners, a corporate advisory and investment firm that provides strategic counsel on international political, economic, technology and security matters. Between 2003 and 2013, Ulf served as Director of the Hanns-Seidel-Foundation’s Washington office, where he was responsible for relations with both the United States and Canada. Previously, Dr. Gartzke worked at the World Economic Forum in Geneva and at the World Bank in Paris. Dr. Gartzke studied political science and international relations at the University of Augsburg, Georgetown University, Sciences Po Paris, and holds a PhD from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Dr. Gartzke is an adjunct fellow at the Hudson Institute and teaches at Georgetown University’s BMW Center for German and European Studies. He divides his time between New York City and Washington, DC.

HENRI LACHMANN
Relations to large corporates

Henri Lachmann is a figurehead of the French business world notably for his role in leading and transforming Schneider Electric. He graduated from Haute Etudes Commerciales (HEC) and began his career in 1963 at Arthur Andersen. In 1970 he moved to Compagnie Industrielle et Financiere de Pompey and became Chief Executive Officer in 1971, and then Chairman and Chief Executive Officer from 1981 to 1997 of Financiere Strafor, which became Strafor Facom.
Henri was a member of the Board of Directors of Schneider Electric SA from 1996 and was appointed as Chairman in 1999 and then Chairman of the Supervisory Board in 2006. He holds several other mandates, including member of the Supervisory Board of Vivendi, Norbert Dentressangle, Carmat / Fimalac as well as a vice-president position of Institut Montaigne.

Pierre Mongin
Relations to Public Companies
Linkedin

Pierre Mongin has formerly acted as Chairman and CEO of RATP (Public transport system in Paris) from 2006 to 2015, and Executive Vice-President and General Secretary of Engie (the French multinational electric utility company). He has devoted much of his previous career to prefectural administration and ministerial offices. Notably, he was appointed prefect in 1993, and became Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin in 2005.
Pierre obtained a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of Paris I and a degree from the Institut d’Études Politiques in Paris. He is also a graduate of the École Nationale d’Administration (1980).

Team

François Gassion
Operating Partner

François joined Prudentia in September 2020, and brings almost 30 years of professional experience, with an extensive experience as strategic and operational advisor.
François started his professional career in the 90s with corporate experiences at AGF (Allianz) and Pechiney (Constellium). In 2003, he launched his own advisory firm. Since then, he has successfully accompanied various CEOs in their corporate strategy and organization.
At Prudentia, François will primarily partner with the management teams of the portfolio companies, to strategically position the companies for maximum value creation.
François graduated from HEC MBA and IMD Lausanne.

HENRI MASSE
Special Adviser
Linkedin

Henri, Prefect (Rtd) and special advisor to the fund, has spent his entire career in public service, serving in 15 French Departments, including four as prefect (in Metropolitan France and overseas), then as head of two national administrations (National director of prison administration / Ministry of Justice, and national director of civil security and risk management / Home office). In his government roles, Henri was always committed to supporting businesses, from SMEs to large groups such as Toyota in Valenciennes, and to facilitate economic transformations. Henri serves on the faculty of the ENA as a lecturer in the Master 2 program in Prevention and Territorial Risk Management.
At Prudentia, Henri Masse is a strategic asset focused 100% on deal sourcing, relationship building, and pre-negotiation of deals on the local level, in direct discussions outside of competitive processes. Henri is a graduate of IEP Paris, and also holds a doctorate degree in history.

THIBAULT WIRTH
Investment Manager
Linkedin

Thibault joined Prudentia in September 2018 as Investment Manager. Previously he was an investment banker at Lincoln International in Paris where he accompanied SMEs in sell-side and buy-side operations, focusing on complex transactions in the industrials sector. He has also had past experiences in large-cap private equity and leveraged finance. Thibault brings transactional expertise and an entrepreneurial mindset allowing him to successfully support deal execution and portfolio management.
Thibault is a graduate from the ESSEC Business School with an MSc in Finance.

Our Expertise

As part of our investment thesis for each company, we develop a specific transformative growth project which management seeks strategic and operational assistance in implementing. When we move forward with an investment, we accompany each business’s leadership to drive transformation by serving as a sparring partner, trying and testing new ideas, and providing the benefit of our experience in areas that may be unfamiliar to management.

1
DIALOGUE WITH SHAREHOLDERS AND MANAGEMENT
Around a shared set of objectives
2
FIRST 100 DAYS
Identify and execute the plan’s top priorities
3
18-MONTH TRANSFORMATION ROADMAP
Launch, then ramp up the strategic development plan
4
SEIZE OPPORTUNITIES FOR BUILD-UP ACQUISITIONS
5
WORK CLOSELY WITH MANAGEMENT
To achieve operational excellence
6
COMPLETE STRATEGIC PLAN
7
EMERGENCE OF REGIONAL AND NATIONAL LEADERS
1
DIALOGUE WITH SHAREHOLDERS AND MANAGEMENT
Around a shared set of objectives
2
FIRST 100 DAYS
Identify and execute the plan’s top priorities
3
18-MONTH TRANSFORMATION ROADMAP
Launch, then ramp up the strategic development plan
4
SEIZE OPPORTUNITIES FOR BUILD-UP ACQUISITIONS
5
WORK CLOSELY WITH MANAGEMENT
To achieve operational excellence
6
COMPLETE STRATEGIC PLAN
7
EMERGENCE OF REGIONAL AND NATIONAL LEADERS

Our five areas of proven expertise in areas vital to small and medium-sized companies

Structure shareholder
equity
Structure organizational
chart
Define and implement a
transformation
strategy
Successfully cross
development stages,
through acquisitions
if necessary
Support management team
with know-how,
expertise and
international
reach
Structure shareholder
equity
Structure organizational
chart
Define and implement a
transformation
strategy
Successfully cross
development stages,
through acquisitions
if necessary
Support management team
with know-how,
expertise and
international
reach

Our Portfolio

News

27 January 2021

PRUDENTIA CAPITAL ORGANIZES THE MERGER OF THE FRENCH ARJOBEX GROUP AND THE GERMAN MDV GROUP TO CREA TE THE LEADING EUROPEAN SYNTHETIC PAPER COMPANY

With the support of the French investment fund Prudentia Capital, 18 months after its successful carve-out, the Arjobex Group, which specializes in the production of synthetic paper under the Polyart brand, acquires its German competitor MDV Group, to create the European leader of specialty coatings on papers and film for the tags and labels market (security, medical, food, etc.), whose growth is projected at 8.3% per year until 2025.

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03 January 2020

PRUDENTIA CAPITAL INVESTS IN THE ZOOLOGICAL PARK OF METZ-AMNEVILLE

The future of the Zoological Park of Metz-Amneville is ensured by a new benchmark investor and majority shareholder: Prudentia Capital, a French fund specializing in the recapitalization and growth of French and European small and mid-sized companies.

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11 December 2019

PRUDENTIA CAPITAL ACCOMPANIES THE TRANSMISSION OF THE FRENCH-GERMAN FAMILY GROUP GEORGE MATHAI

Prudentia Capital accompanies the management team led by Gregoire and Nicolas Leclabart in the acquisition of the George Mathai group, a world leader in the manufacture of synthetic hair color swatches, which was formed in 2016 with the merger of the French group George and the German group Eduard Mathai.

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29 July 2019

PRUDENTIA CAPITAL ORGANIZES THE CARVE OUT OF ARJOBEX FROM ARJOWIGGINS GROUP

Prudentia Capital, a French private equity firm, has successfully carved out Arjobex from Arjowiggins Group, a manufacturer of creative and technical papers. Arjobex specializes in the production of synthetic paper used for tags and labels (food, industrial and security applications) sold under the Polyart registered trademark.

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We are responsible investors

WE HAVE STRONG CONVICTIONS

We support the real economy by investing in and promoting the sustainable, inclusive growth of small and mid-sized businesses.

We take Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) criteria into account throughout the investment lifecycle to manage risks and capitalize on opportunities.

We uphold the same stringent standards of Corporate Social Responsibility in our own company that we promote in our investments.

CONVICTIONS EMBODIED IN CLEAR PRINCIPLES

  • We are thorough in performing due diligence
  • We adopt a long-term approach
  • We work hand-in-hand in partnership with entrepreneurs
  • We support focused, attainable goals
  • We are committed to providing hands-on assistance in cooperation with management
  • We emphasize regular assessments of progress, both quantitative and qualitative
  • We uphold transparency by gathering and publishing information on our own extra-financial performance and that of the companies we invest in.
  • We strive for constant improvement

We ask each member of the firm to participate in ongoing ESG training and incorporate these values in every aspect of our work, under the supervision of Roland Germain, ESG Officer for Prudentia.

Our ESG policy, available for download below, is designed around the six principles of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), of which we are a signatory. As the largest global initiative (representing more than $70 trillion in AuM) to provide guidance on responsible investment, the PRI offers a well-established framework.

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Contact

PRUDENTIA CAPITAL

contact@prudentiacapital.com
+33 (0)1 81 69 31 89

17 rue Lamennais
75008 Paris
France

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