Hg invests in Geomatikk Group

Partnering with the business to continue its growth as a Northern European champion in  Underground Mission-Critical GIS Data and Detection.


Oslo, NORWAY and London, UK. 18 December 2020: Hg, Europe’s leading software investor, today announces an investment in Geomatikk Group (“Geomatikk”).

Geomatikk is a tech-enabled services champion, managing critical ‘check-before-you-dig’ safety assessments to network owners, contractors and consulting engineers within Norway, Sweden and Finland.  

Hg will support Geomatikk with its extensive experience in scaling tech champions across Europe. Hg will become the majority investor, with founders and management remaining as significant investors in the business. The full terms of the transaction are not disclosed and closing is subject to obtaining relevant regulatory approvals.

Founded in 2005, Geomatikk is a leading tech-enabled services provider managing critical “check-before-you-dig” requests in Norway, Sweden and Finland. The core product is a comprehensive mapping of all underground infrastructure in the countries it operates, which underpins an end-to-end technology platform that manages these pre-dig checks and complementary workflows such as site inspection, damage resolution and network monitoring. Geomatikk has become a one-stop source of truth for underground cable management serving network owners and the construction industry across the Nordic region.

Hg has been investing in and growing businesses across the Nordic region for close to 20 years.

Geomatikk is also Hg’s 10th investment in the Tech Services sector, where around €1 billion has now been invested. This investment will be made from the Hg Mercury 2 Fund.

Øystein Moan will also join Geomatikk as Chairman of the board. Øystein has extensive experience of building software businesses in the Nordic region, having been CEO, and currently Executive Chair, of Visma, a leading provider of business-critical software to private and public enterprises in the Nordic, Benelux and Baltic regions. Over the last 23 years Øystein has overseen revenue growth from NOK 300 million to over NOK 19 billion today at Visma. Geomatikk has the potential to follow a pattern similar to Visma and become a European champion in Underground Mission-Critical GIS Data and Detection.

Knut Bratsberg, CEO and Founder of Geomatikk, said: “Hg has a long history of significantly scaling technology businesses in the Nordics. We believe that their extensive experience in software and technology transformation will enable us to provide an even more seamless and compelling product for our customers, whilst also the opportunity to bring our vital services to other regions in Northern Europe. This is an incredibly exciting opportunity and I would like to say thank you to our excellent team who have performed incredibly well in what has been a significant and challenging year for everyone. We look forward to what the future holds.”

David Issott, Partner at Hg, said: “We are hugely impressed in what Knut and the Geomatikk team have built in the Nordics. Geomatikk provides a high value service protecting critical infrastructure in the region. By building a high-quality and increasingly tech-enabled product, Geomatikk is a leading European champion in this geographic information sector. We look forward to working with Knut and the entire Geomatikk team as we use our experience of scaling technology enabled businesses to support further growth.”


For further details::

Hg
Tom Eckersley
+44 (0)20 8396 0930

Diana Vaughton and
Samantha Chiene (Brunswick UK)
+44 (0)207 404 5959
HG@brunswickgroup.com


About Geomatikk Group

The Geomatikk Group is a leading tech-enabled services provider delivering solutions and services to manage safe excavations, before-you-dig-requests, Utility works and Street works. The group operates in Norway, Sweden and Finland, and is establishing itself in the UK. Geomatikk is protecting the infrastructure for more than 300 network owners, handling 2 million transactions and more than 250 thousand physical field detections annually. Network owners, municipalities, contractors, civil works designers and other stakeholders collaborate and interact on the Geomatikk digital platform to optimize their construction projects and minimize asset strikes.

About Hg

Hg is a leading European investor in software and services, focused on backing businesses that change how we all do business. Deep technology expertise, complemented by vertical application specialisation and dedicated operational support, provides a compelling proposition to management teams looking to scale their businesses. Hg has funds under management of over $30 billion, with an investment team of over 140 professionals, plus a portfolio team of more than 30 operators, providing practical support to help our businesses to realise their growth ambitions. Based in London, Munich and New York, Hg has a portfolio of over 30 software and technology businesses, comprising over 35,000 employees across the UK, US and Europe. For further details, please visit the Hg website: https://hgcapital.com/.