AVG Technologies Buoyed by Investment from TA Associates
September 30, 2009
AMSTERDAM – September 30, 2009 – AVG Technologies, one of the most popular providers of computer security software, announced today that TA Associates, a leading growth private equity firm, has made a substantial investment in the company. TA Associates, which has funded companies such as BMC Software, Cadence Design and McAfee, has bought a minority stake in AVG Technologies from its current shareholders, having paid more than $200 million for the stake. The deal will add another minority investor to the current ownership of AVG Technologies, which also includes investments from Enterprise Investors, Benson Oak Capital and Intel Capital. In addition, as a result of the funding, two representatives from TA will join the company’s board of directors.
“This is a major stake in the ground for AVG at a pivotal time in the marketplace,” said JR Smith, CEO of AVG Technologies. “In the coming months, AVG will be moving forward with landmark small business and consumer offerings – this investment positions our company nicely for continued growth.”
“TA Associates sees strong market potential in AVG, which has grown dramatically in the past few years and made some very strategic acquisitions such as its LinkScanner and behavioral technology,” said Jonathan Meeks, a Managing Director of TA Associates who will join AVG’s board of directors. “With more than 80 million users, award-winning offerings and several new technologies in the works, AVG is rapidly assuming a global leadership role in the security software industry. We believe our investment will be key to taking AVG from an important mid-size contributor to a true market force, both through organic growth and acquisitions.”
About AVG Technologies
www.avg.com
AVG is a global security software maker protecting more than 80 million consumers and small businesses in 167 countries from the ever-growing incidence of web threats, viruses, spam, cyber-scams and hackers on the Internet. AVG has nearly two decades of experience in combating cyber crime and one of the most advanced laboratories for detecting, pre-empting and combating Web-borne threats from around the world. Its free, downloadable software allows novice users to have basic anti-virus protection and then easily upgrade to greater levels of safety and defense when they are ready. AVG has nearly 6,000 resellers, partners and distributors globally including Amazon.com, CNET, Cisco, Ingram Micro, Play.com, Wal-Mart, and Yahoo!
About TA Associates
Founded in 1968, TA Associates is one of the largest and one of the most experienced private equity firms. The firm has invested in nearly 400 companies and manages more than $16 billion in capital. With offices in Boston, London, Menlo Park and Mumbai, TA Associates leads buyouts and minority recapitalizations of profitable growth companies in the technology, financial services, business services, healthcare and consumer industries. More information about TA Associates can be found at www.ta.com.
About Enterprise Investors
Enterprise Investors is the oldest one of the largest private equity and venture capital firms in Central and Eastern Europe, managing since 1990 investment funds with capital exceeding €1.7 billion. The funds managed by EI have invested more than €1.2 million in 113 companies in Poland and other CEE countries and have exited 91 investments to date with total proceeds of €1.4 billion. EI, which has in offices in Warsaw, Prague, Bucharest, Bratislava and Jersey City, USA , has extensive experience with IT companies in CEE, having funded 13 businesses from this sector. For more information, visit www.ei.com.pl
About Benson Oak Capital
Benson Oak Capital provides equity financing for buyouts, expansion capital and special opportunities with a focus on mid-size companies based in Czech and Slovak Republics. BOC was the original private equity investor in AVG Technologies, acquiring 100% in 2004. Its other current investments include ETA, a leading Czech manufacturer of domestic appliances; Plastkov, a producer of plastic parts for automobiles; Bochemie, a producer of specialty chemicals and household cleaning products under the SAVO brand; and Grapo Technologies, a designer and manufacturer of UV-cured, wide format printers. www.bensonoakcapital.com
About Intel Capital
Intel Capital, Intel’s global investment organization, makes equity investments in innovative technology start-ups and companies worldwide. Intel Capital invests in a broad range of companies offering hardware, software, and services targeting enterprise, home, mobility, health, consumer Internet, semiconductor manufacturing and cleantech. Since 1991, Intel Capital has invested more than US$9 billion in over 1,000 companies in 46 countries. In that timeframe, 174 portfolio companies have gone public on various exchanges around the world and 231 were acquired or participated in a merger. In 2008, Intel Capital invested about US$1.59 billion in 169 investments with approximately 62 percent of funds (excluding Clearwire) invested outside North America. For more information on Intel Capital and its differentiated advantages, visit www.intelcapital.com.
Investors/Media:
Siobhan MacDermott
AVG Technologies
E-mail: siobhan.macdermott@avg.com
CZ Mobile: +420 725 695 132
US Mobile: +1 415 299 2945
Media:
Aimee Schoaf
AVG Technologies — USA
E-mail: aimee.schoaf@avg.com
Mobile: +1 480 236 8428
Philip Nunes
BackBay Communications, for TA Associates
E-mail: phil.nunes@backbaycommunications.com
Phone: +1 617 556 9982 x-227