Execution certainty and flexible financing vital to Talenthouse’s to complete the acquisition of Coolabi Group and secure growth funding - Kartesia
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Execution certainty and flexible financing vital to Talenthouse’s to complete the acquisition of Coolabi Group and secure growth funding

Press Release
25.07.2022

In July this year, Kartesia provided a senior financing package of up to £41m to support Talenthouse AG with its acquisition of the remaining shareholding in Coolabi Group Ltd (“Coolabi”) and fund future growth plans. Coolabi is a media group that specialises in the creation, development and brand management of children’s and family intellectual property rights (IP).

Coolabi primarily generates royalties-based income from its portfolio of over 200 IPs that have been developed into a wide range of products, including an international best-selling book series, games, award-winning TV productions and licensed products. Talenthouse AG is a technology platform company leading a structural shift in the way that creative content is produced, employing a platform business model to source content at the scale and quality required to keep pace with consumer demand in the digital age. The company is registered in Switzerland and operationally headquartered in London with offices in LA, NYC, Berlin, Milan and Philadelphia.

As Talenthouse is a listed business on the SIX Swiss Exchange, speed and certainty of execution of a suitable financing package was essential to the closing of this transaction by the buyer’s deadline of the end of Q2. Kartesia has both a track record in providing quick but flexible financing solutions and the necessary knowledge of a nuanced market to rapidly assess the opportunity and make itself comfortable with the solution provided.

Despite the vendor initially proposing a refinancing solution of £32m, with Kartesia’s European lending and market-specific expertise, a package of up to £41m was suggested, including a smaller initial refinancing package but the addition of a committed acquisition facility. This will allow Talenthouse and Coolabi to pursue inorganic growth opportunities in those areas in which they are developing new products and services, as well as in exciting new geographies for the business. This diversification of the business was also essential in making Kartesia comfortable with the transaction, alongside the strength of Coolabi’s recurring revenue streams.

This is an extremely exciting time to be involved in the growth of both Talenthouse and Coolabi Group, given their already impressive position in the market and the potential for growth that has been boosted by Kartesia’s financing solution. A number of potential acquisition targets have already been identified which, coupled with the development of a diversified content platform in growth areas like digital, should lead to increasing market share in key geographies like the US and UK. We look forward to working closely with the management teams to realise the full potential of the business!