04.2021: German Equity Partners V, a fund managed by German investment company ECM Equity Capital Management GmbH, has acquired a majority stake in Ludwigsburg-based ACADEMY Holding AG, the leading provider of invoicing, factoring, driving instructor training and franchise services in the German driving school market. With its three business units, the ACADEMY Group covers the entire value chain within the driving school market. The demand for professional services in the driving school market is continuously increasing and thus offers further growth potential for the Group. The fund acquired the shares from a long-standing private investor. As part of the transaction, the management team comprised of board members Matthias and David Wimpff is taking a stake in the Group. Together with the long-standing management team and ECM, they will continue and expand the successful course of the ACADEMY Group.

With the foundation of DATAPART Factoring GmbH in 1994, the cornerstone was laid for today’s ACADEMY Group. As the leading specialist in invoicing services and factoring for driving schools with an annual factoring volume of around €170 million, DATAPART forms the core of the Group. Around this offering, the Group has established a number of other services along the entire value chain in the driving school market in order to meet the need of driving schools for a ‘one-stop shop’. As such, DVPi – which operates facilities for driving instructor training in Frankfurt am Main and Hamburg – is another pillar of the Group. Under the umbrella brand ACADEMY, it also offers the largest franchise system for driving schools in Germany at over 300 locations. Thanks to its firm market presence and complementary range of services, the ACADEMY Group has established a market-leading position in the German driving school market and has long-standing customer relationships with driving instructors.

Centum Capital provides this information as a market news, but has not been involved in the transaction.