News + Media

2/18/15

Clarion 
Capital 
Partners 
Acquires 
Majority 
Interest 
in 
Moravia 
IT 
Clarion Capital Partners Acquires Majority Interest in Moravia IT

Brno, Czech Republic—February 16, 2015 — Moravia IT a.s. (“Moravia”) announced today that Clarion Capital Partners, LLC (“Clarion”), a New York-based middle market private equity firm, has acquired a majority interest in the company. Moravia’s 2014 revenues exceeded US$100 million, making the translation and localization company the first in the language services industry to achieve the hundred-million–dollar milestone through organic growth alone.

“We’re very excited to have the opportunity to invest in Moravia and partner with management and the existing shareholders,” said Jon Haas, Managing Director at Clarion. “Moravia is an exceptional company with a talented management team, dedicated employees, a unique client portfolio, and an unparalleled reputation in its industry. At Clarion, we focus on investing in high-growth businesses and on backing management teams and companies whose character and culture are conducive to forming true, long-term partnerships,” he added. “We have found all of the ingredients for continued success in Moravia. Clarion will also be looking for acquisitions to build upon the company’s strengths in localization as well as expand Moravia’s current presence in marketing services and technology outsourcing.”

“This is a major milestone for Moravia, a company my parents founded 25 years ago and which I led in various positions over the years,” commented Katerina Janku, Moravia’s co-founder and co-owner. “I remain commited to Moravia as a significant shareholder and look forward to working with Clarion as a member of the Board of Directors of the newly formed holding company that will own Moravia, helping to take the company to the next stage of development.”

In 2014, Moravia expanded its staff in each of its major global locations reaching over 850 employees to meet growing client needs. The Company relocated to new offices in Nanjing, Tokyo, and Seattle, and added satellite offices in Brno, Czech Republic, and Rosario, Argentina.

“We’re proud to be the first localization company to achieve $100 million organically—a milestone that’s even more significant for a privately-held firm,” added Tomas Kratochvil, Moravia’s CEO. “The market has clearly embraced Moravia’s philosophy of hand-selecting and cultivating our talents, offerings, and engagements, along with our commitment to customize solutions for every client. We look forward to continuing our existing strategy with Clarion.”

Moravia’s services address the complex localization demands of leading global brands and fast-growing companies, primarily in the IT and life science industry sectors. Moravia partners with its clients to succeed in global markets by adapting or sometimes recreating the client’s content to meet the specific linguistic, technical and cultural expectations of customers in each target market.

Moravia was represented by its counsel, Kemp Little LLP and advisors, Little Venice Partners, LLP. Clarion was represented by: CMS Cameron McKenna LLP; Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP; and Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.. N M Rothschild & Sons Limited provided debt advisory services. Ceská sporitelna, a. s., part of Erste Group Bank AG, and Komercní banka, a.s., part of the Société Générale Group, have jointly arranged the acquisition financing for the transaction.

Media Contacts
Jeff Green
Michael A. Burns & Associate, Inc.
Email: greenj@mbapr.com
Phone: 214-521-8596

Doug Mellinger
Managing Director
Clarion Capital Partners, LLC
Email: dmellinger@clarion-capital.com
Phone: 212-821-0190

About Moravia

Moravia is a leading globalization solution provider, enabling companies in the information technology, e-learning, and life sciences industries to enter global markets with high-quality multilingual products. (www.moravia.com).

About Clarion

Founded in 1999, Clarion is a New York-based investment manager operating two primary business segments: Private Equity (launched in 1999) and Structured Credit (launched in 2018). Clarion’s private equity business seeks to make primarily control investments in a diversified portfolio of lower middle-market companies generating $7.5-30.0 million of EBITDA. Clarion focuses on growth companies in industries such as: Media, Entertainment & Technology; Financial Technology & Services; Business, Healthcare & Industrial Services; and Consumer. Clarion’s structured credit business focuses mostly on CLO equity and mezzanine investments, sourced both in the primary and secondary markets. The structured credit team manages traditional private funds and an insurance-dedicated fund. Additional information on Clarion can be found at www.clarion-capital.com.