• EQT VI to acquire Evidensia, the Nordic leader within high-quality veterinarian services
• EQT VI to support Evidensia’s continued growth and expansion

EQT VI has entered into an agreement to acquire a majority stake in Evidensia Djursjukvård AB (”Evidensia” or ”the Company”) from Valedo. The foundations Stiftelsen Strömsholm Djursjukvård and Stiftelsen Svensk Djursjukvård, and Evidensia’s management will remain as minority owners. Evidensia is the Nordic market leader within high-quality veterinarian services, offering diagnostics, medical treatments and surgery for pets and horses in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland.

Evidensia was established in 2012 in connection with the merger of some of the largest and most reputable pet- and horse hospitals in Sweden. Since then, the Company has grown rapidly through a large number of add-on acquisitions. To date, more than 40 acquisitions have been completed. Evidensia is today the largest veterinarian services provider in the Nordics with approximately 90 clinics and hospitals. The Company treats more than 700,000 animals annually and is also the leading operator for education and referrals. Evidensia has approximately 1,500 employees of which around 500 are veterinarians. Sales for 2014 are estimated to be around SEK 1.4 billion.

EQT VI will apply a strategy geared towards further growth which is planned to be achieved both through increased market penetration and add-on acquisitions with Evidensia as platform. Focus for Evidensia is to remain ‘best in class’ in terms of quality, being a driving force in improving industry-standards and to continue to provide the best care and the most advanced treatments to pets and horses in the Nordics.

"The demand for professional pet care has increased significantly over the past years as pets are more and more considered to be important family members. With our focus on high-quality and customer satisfaction, Evidensia is well positioned to provide the best basic care and the most advanced treatments available in the market. We look forward to develop Evidensia further together with EQT VI as our new owner. Their industrial approach and ability to drive change will support us in taking an even more active part of the industry consolidation,” says Anders Thunberg, CEO of Evidensia.

The parties have agreed not to disclose the transaction value. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals from the competition authorities.

Contacts:
Johan Hähnel, EQT VI Spokesperson, +46 706 05 63 34

About EQT
EQT is the leading private equity group in Northern Europe, with portfolio companies in Northern and Eastern Europe, Asia and the US with total sales of more than EUR 25 billion and over 500,000 employees. EQT works with portfolio companies to achieve sustainable growth, operational excellence and market leadership.

More information can be found on www.eqt.se

About Evidensia Djursjukvård AB
Evidensia is the Nordic leader in veterinarian services offering diagnostics, medical treatments and surgery for pets and horses in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland. The company has approximately 90 clinics and hospitals and approximately 1,500 employees of which 500 are veterinarians.

More information can be found on www.evidensia.se