Clearwater International advises Graphite Capital on raising debt capital to support the MBO of Hanson Wade

Clearwater International has provided debt advisory support to Graphite Capital, a leading UK mid-market private equity specialist, to support the management buy-out of Hanson Wade, the market leading conference organiser and provider of information services.

Graphite focuses on management buy-outs and also invests in development capital opportunities. It backs companies with enterprise values of €35 million to €190 million.

Hanson Wade, based in London, has three conference divisions: pharma and biotech, which generates approximately three-quarters of revenues; construction and engineering; and human resources. The business benefits from high repeat bookings from both sponsors and delegates.

The company also owns a fast-growing scientific data business, Beacon, which provides subscribers with access to a powerful database covering clinical trials and other research data in niche sectors of the bio-pharma industry.