World First (minority stake) / FTV Capital

Cavendish Corporate Finance is pleased to announce that World First UK Limited, a leading provider of foreign exchange, international payment and hedging solutions to corporate and private clients, has completed the sale of a minority stake to FTV Capital, a US based growth equity investor with a strong track record in payments, transaction processing and financial services.

Founded in 2004, World First provides international currency, payment and hedging solutions to its clients throughout the world. Headquartered in London, the company provides its customers with a superior foreign exchange experience by utilizing a proprietary technology platform that automates and streamlines transactions, enabling customers to enjoy better rates and faster transactions. The flexible, user friendly platform is supported by award winning customer service. As the economy becomes increasingly global, World First is uniquely positioned to address the growing international payment needs of corporate and private clients.

“As one of the fastest growing companies in the foreign exchange market, World First has distinguished itself with a strong management team, innovative culture, leading market position and unique value proposition,” said Brad Bernstein, FTV Capital partner and new World First board member.

“World First has done a remarkable job of enabling international commerce for small to medium sized businesses and private individuals, a market segment which is rapidly increasing with global trade and demand for cost-effective foreign exchange solutions, but has been underserved historically.

The company’s consistent execution has been quite impressive, and we look forward to partnering with management to accelerate World First’s expansion globally.”

Jonathan Quin, co-founder and CEO of World First, said:

“We look forward to working with our new partner, FTV Capital, a firm that has the experience and resources to help support the continued success of World First – we believe this will help us to accelerate our expansion plans significantly.”

Nick Robinson, co-founder and Vice Chairman added:

“FTV Capital has a strong reputation as a long-established and accomplished investor in the payments and financial services space. The FTV team brings a deep understanding of this complex market, as well as a distinctive group of strategic relationships that will help our organization achieve our plans for expansion, especially in the US.”

“Cavendish were a fantastic partner for World First throughout the investment process. We were impressed with their knowledge, level of service and professionalism and we are very excited about working with FTV to realise our growth plans.”

Peter Gray, Partner at Cavendish commented “World First is one of the most impressive businesses we have had the privilege of advising. It is destined to become a leading global brand in the rapidly growing international payments space.

“In Sӧderberg & Partners we have found a partner who sees the world the same way we do and the whole team at Fidelius is incredibly excited about the next phase of our journey. I would like to extend our thanks to Ben and the team at Cavendish who ran an excellent process and provided quality, considered advice throughout – many thanks to the whole team!”

Jim Grant, CEO, Fidelius Group

“In July 2015 we founded Pure Cremation and have grown the business to become the largest independent provider of prepaid plans in the UK. Pure is only part way through its exciting journey and, after a rigorous search process, we are delighted to have found such a strong partner in Epiris.

The Cavendish team, led by Jonathan Buxton and Ben Goldring, did a fantastic job, running a truly competitive process and managing the transaction with great skill. They were crucial in delivering this deal and its successful outcome – many thanks to the whole team.”

Bryan Powell and Catherine Powell, Co-Founders of Pure Cremation

“We are delighted to have achieved this result for the business that Daniel Freedman co-founded and found such a strong partner in the form of Lovell Minnick for the next stage of its growth. Howard and Ben were an excellent support throughout this process, and provided us with first class advice and guidance throughout.”

Elaine Freedman, shareholder of London & Capital

“We chose to partner with LMP because of the firm’s excellent track record of working with management teams to scale and enhance wealth and asset management firms. Their deep experience in the space and our sense of shared values and culture align with our focus on providing an exceptional service and experience for our clients.”

Guy McGlashan, Chief Executive Officer, London & Capital

“This partnership will enable us accelerate our global growth plans by investing in our people, technology, sales and marketing. I would like to thank the whole team at Cavendish for providing advice and guidance on this transformational transaction.”

Sean Fitzgerald, CEO, Sentenial

“This new partnership is a very exciting opportunity for Tempcover to both consolidate its existing position and provide a platform for further growth into new verticals and markets. Many thanks to Ben and the Cavendish team who provided invaluable advice throughout the process and helped us achieve this great outcome for the Company.”

Alan Inskip, CEO, Tempcover

We were delighted with our decision to engage with Cavendish to advise us on our plans to bring inward investment into the group. Duncan, James Ellis and James Baker brought such complementary skills to our internal deal team. They calmly helped us navigate through all stages of the process, due diligence and through to completion. They were a pleasure to work with and I’d highly recommended them

Steve Wilkie, Chairman and Co-Founder, the Responsible Group

“The Cavendish team led by Joe Stelzer and supported by Chirag Gohil did an outstanding job in identifying Begbies as a perfect home to drive our future growth. Cavendish negotiated an excellent deal and provided invaluable guidance to us through the process.”

Paul Appleton, Managing Partner at David Rubin & Partners

I am delighted that we have secured a new loan facility an that our three existing funders continue to support the business during this challenging period, demonstrating their confidence in Morses Club and our growth and digital diversification strategy.

Paul Smith, CEO, Morses Club PLC

Alan Inskip, CEO of Tempcover