Carlyle to buy 30% of Quest Global for $500 mn
MUMBAI : Private equity (PE) giant Carlyle has agreed to acquire a significant minority stake in engineering services firm Quest Global, the two companies said on Tuesday. Simultaneously, Carlyle and Quest will together buy back all shares from the company’s existing investors, Bain Capital LP, Advent International LP, and GIC Re and extinguish them. Alongside, founder Ajit Prabhu will bring in additional funds to increase his stake.
According to a person aware of the deal, Carlyle will invest $500 million; once the shares bought back are extinguished and Prabhu makes his investment, Carlyle will end up with a stake of about 30%. The transaction values Quest Global at around $1.8 billion, the person said on condition of anonymity. The buyback is worth about $200 million, while Prabhu will invest $120 million to increase his stake by 8% to about 40%, the person added.
Mint first reported Carlyle’s plans to invest in the Singapore-based Quest Global on 23 May. Earlier, PE firm Apax Global was also in the race for the Quest Global stake. Founded in 1997, Quest Global is an engineering, research and development (ER&D) services provider for the design, product development, and operations of complex engineering systems.
The company has 67 delivery centres and offices in 17 countries. Carlyle was an early investor in Quest Global, exiting it in 2003. The company aims to close FY24 with close to $900 million in revenue and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (Ebitda) of $165 million.
It is planning to tap public markets over the next three years. For Carlyle, this is one of the biggest investments in recent times. Its $500 million investment is expected to help Quest pursue its inorganic growth strategy
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