Netex Learning was founded in 1997 by Carlos Ezquerro and José Ramón Mosteiro around three key pillars: digital learning, innovation and technology. These pillars have driven the growth of Netex, from the launch of their first mobile app for professional education in 2005 to their extensive platform and technology solutions today, having won numerous international awards for their platform and system excellence along the way.
Netex specialises in creating innovative digital learning solutions for companies, addressing the growing need for flexible employee training. Their flagship product, LearningCloud, is a state-of-the-art cloud-based learning management system (LMS) that delivers and manages training programs. It includes tools for creating interactive and engaging digital content and supports social learning and sharing. Netex also provides custom content creation services to meet specific learning needs. Recently, Netex acquired Virtual College, a UK-based company, which added a vast library of ready-made content to their offering.
Both founders have chosen to partner with bd-capital in this next phase of growth and will retain a significant stake in the company.
This is the first PE-led public-to-private transaction in the BME Growth stock market and bd-capital’s first public-to-private process – highlighting the firm’s strategy of selecting high-quality companies that can leverage bd-capital’s operational expertise and partnership approach. This is the second investment of bd-capital’s Fund 2 (after the first partnership with TLC Worldwide), and the third in Spain since 2021, joining Taptap and Rakit Group in the Spanish-headquartered portfolio.
Leadership perspectives
Carlos Ezquerro, CEO of Netex said:
“We were looking for financial partners to carry out the following stage of expansion, and more than 20 private equity firms showed interest. We chose to partner with bd-capital given their combination of strong positioning in Spain and their international capabilities, plus their model of combining investment professionals with Operating Partners. bd-capital seemed to us the perfect partner, both personally and professionally. This partnership will help us expand the business in international markets both organically and inorganically.”
Alex Faginas, CFO of Netex added:
“From a financial perspective, we gain further robustness with the support of bd-capital. The new partnership strengthens our balance sheet, through the capital increase and the conversion of convertible bonds and will help fund future growth.”
Francesc Casabella, Operating Partner at bd-capital, will become the new Chairman of Netex, and commented:
“We have great confidence in the current management team and are committed to providing the resources and expertise needed to support their continued success and innovation.”
Alejo Vidal-Quadras, Partner and Head of Southern Europe at bd-capital, added:
“We see tremendous potential in Netex. Our investment underscores our belief in their business model, leadership team and the significant opportunities ahead in the corporate eLearning market.”
Advisory teams
bd-capital executed the transaction in close partnership with advisory teams from Uría Menéndez (legal), Deloitte (financial, tax and tech), EY-Parthenon (commercial), EY (Impact Thesis), Marsh and a number of other industry experts. The company was advised by Martínez-Echevarría (legal) and Macquarie (financial).
