Currently, owned by Five Arrows Principal Investments, A2Mac1 is a benchmarking solutions provider that caters to the automotive sector and beyond

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Providence Equity Partners is in exclusive discussions to acquire A2Mac1. (Credit: aymane jdidi from Pixabay)

Providence Equity Partners is reportedly in exclusive discussions to acquire A2Mac1, a French automotive data company, for nearly €1.4bn.

In this connection, the US-based private equity investment firm has entered into an exclusive agreement with Five Arrows Principal Investments (FAPI), the owner of A2Mac1, reported Reuters, citing two undisclosed sources.

The sources indicated that Providence Equity Partners’ offer is higher than that of rival bids from buyout funds EQT and TA Associates.

Five Arrows Principal Investments will hold on to a minority stake in A2Mac1, said the sources. The former is being advised by Jefferies and Harris Williams as per the report.

A2Mac1 calls itself a benchmarking solutions provider that serves the automotive sector and beyond.

The company has built a 3D technology platform, which is designed to help manufacturers in streamlining the design and materials of their products across their life cycle with a continuous focus on innovation and cost as well as value optimisation.

The potential offer from Providence Equity Partners values the French firm nearly 30 times its core earnings of €50m, said one of the sources.

Separately, A2MAC1 has announced a collaboration with computer-aided engineering specialist Tecosim.

Through the partnership, TECOSIM is expected to gain from A2MAC1’s client relationships in benchmarking.

TECOSIM will also add its expertise and experience from its TEC|BENCH process to the A2MAC1 portfolio to enable the French firm to include structured simulations in order to offer significantly deeper analysis to clients.