Advised EQT on its acquisition of SUSE, a leading global provider of open source infrastructure software for large enterprises, from Micro Focus (LSE: MCRO) 
-Founded in 1992, SUSE is a market leader in enterprise-grade, open source software-defined infrastructure and application delivery solutions for on premise and cloud-based workloads, including solutions for container and application delivery technology.
-The company has a subscription-based business model, providing customers with Linux OS plus a wide range of support services.
-SUSE has c. 1,400 employees and more than 60 offices across four different continents.
-The company has more than 5,000 global partners and serves over 80% of the Fortune Global 50 companies.
-During the ownership of Micro Focus, SUSE operated as a semi-independent business, executing on a clearly defined growth charter.
-SUSE has also successfully expanded its product portfolio, including solutions for cloud and storage as well as container and application delivery technology.
-EQT Partners (“”EQT””) was founded in 1994 and is based in Stockholm, Sweden with additional offices in Europe, North America and Asia.
-EQT has invested across a range of geographies and in several sectors and industries. The current portfolio includes investments in TMT, real estate, industrial technology healthcare, services and consumer goods.
-EQT funds have portfolio companies in Europe, Asia and the US with total sales of more than €19bn and approximately 110,000 employees.
-EQT has raised €50bn across 27 funds, with its latest active fund, EQT VIII, having secured €10.75bn..
-SUSE is the first enterprise Linux and OpenStack distributor, underscored by 25+ years’ of open-source innovation.
-SUSE will benefit from favourable long-term growth tailwinds such as: (i) Unix to Linux migrations, (ii) Data centre consolidation and virtualisation, (iii) Cloud computing infrastructure, (iv) Software-defined innovations, (v) Adoption of container technology and DevOps best practises.
-EQT will support SUSE’s next period of growth and innovation as an independent company. The strategy includes:
Strengthening SUSE’s position as a leading open source player, both organically and through add-on acquisitions, leveraging EQT’s long-term experience in the software space.
-Further building SUSE’s public cloud business and expanding its next-generation product offerings.
-Arma acted as financial advisor to EQT in the acquisition of SUSE from Micro Focus.
-The transaction illustrates Arma’s leadership in advising software companies, leveraging its deep domain expertise and first class execution capabilities.
-This transaction represents a major milestone for Arma, as SUSE was Arma’s first client at the firm’s inception 15 years ago, when Arma advised its then investors led by Apax Partners on the $210 million sale to Novell, a landmark transaction which put Arma, then employing four people, on the map..