Cherry Tree Advises SPARK on its Sale to Arcadea Group

Cherry Tree Advises SPARK on its Sale to Arcadea Group

SPARK

Cherry Tree Advises SPARK on its Sale to Arcadea Group

SPARK Acquired by Arcadea Group

“Cherry Tree was instrumental in keeping the various parties involved in the transaction continuously moving forward. They were able to deliver a great result for all parties involved while dealing with turbulent markets on a short timeline. I can’t imagine how the deal process would have gone without their involvement, connections, expertise and guidance.”

— Nick Elders, SPARK CEO

INDUSTRY:
Technology, Software​
DESCRIPTION: 
SaaS-based Lending Platform
HQ LOCATION: 
Minneapolis, MN
TRANSACTION TYPE:
100% Sale to Financial Buyer

Situation:

In June 2023, Arcadea Group acquired Saas-based lending platform SPARK from Community Reinvestment Fund, USA (“CRF”). SPARK was incubated within CRF more than 10 years ago and served as a vital technology tool for lenders during the PPP lending program, facilitating billions of dollars of SBA loans in 2020 through the CARES Act. Later in 2020, CRF spun SPARK out as a standalone entity, allowing the business to rapidly grow customers and revenue.  

Cherry Tree’s Role:

Cherry Tree was engaged to advise SPARK, its board of directors and its shareholders in identifying the best partner to help the company achieve its next phase of growth, while maximizing shareholder value. It was especially important to SPARK and CRF that the process be swift so as to not disrupt SPARK’s momentum. Cherry Tree’s customized process included introductions and discussions with numerous potential acquirors in marketing the opportunity, soliciting proposals, negotiating terms, supporting due diligence, and facilitating the closing of the transaction.

The process generated broad interest from strategic and financial partners. SPARK was sold to Arcadea Group, a Toronto-based growth equity, long-hold software investor with additional FinTech holdings and experience building profitable, high growth software companies.

About SPARK

SPARK helps small business lenders take advantage of the FinTech ecosystem and thrive. SPARK is built, managed, and enhanced by a team of passionate experts across the globe and is focused on helping small business lenders succeed in an increasingly digital world. Founded in 2020, SPARK’s network of banks, credit unions, CDFIs and specialty lenders have used the platform to process over $25B in lending activity, targeting deserving small businesses owners across the U.S.

About Arcadea Group

Arcadea Group invests in high-quality, strongly growing, typically founder-controlled vertical software companies over durations of time that no traditional private equity or growth equity firm can match. With headquarters in Toronto, offices in Florida, and portfolio companies in North America, Europe, and Asia, Arcadea maintains a global investment purview. Arcadea leverages tailor-made, flexible strategies that prioritize value creation for all stakeholders, offering an alternative to the rigid playbooks of Private Equity or Software Aggregators, which prioritize owner returns at the expense of customers and employees.

About CRF

Founded in 1988, Community Reinvestment Fund, USA (CRF) is a national non-profit organization with a mission to improve lives and strengthen communities through innovative financial solutions. A leading Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), CRF supports mission-driven organizations, increases economic mobility, and builds strong local economies through the development of solutions aimed at creating an equitable financial system. CRF has injected more than $3.5 billion to stimulate job creation and economic development and support community facilities.

Cherry Tree & Associates provides investment banking services through our FINRA-licensed broker dealer.

DISCLOSURES
FINRA
SIPC

Cherry Tree Advises Renodis in Acquisition of 12 Points Consulting

Cherry Tree Advises Renodis in Acquisition of 12 Points Consulting

Renodis

Cherry Tree Advises Renodis in Acquisition of 12 Points Consulting

“We are thrilled to welcome the 12 Points team and its clients to our company. This acquisition, along with the recent acquisition of The Eric Ryan Corporation, will strengthen our ability to offer a variety of services to our combined clients and prospects. Our priority is to ensure the resiliency of our clients’ connectivity, advise on the right technologies, and provide best-in-class managed solutions.”

— Craig Beason, CEO and Owner of Renodis​

INDUSTRY:
Telecommunications
DESCRIPTION:
Hospitality Telecommunications Equipment and Management
Services Provider
LOCATION:
Fargo, ND
TRANSACTION TYPE:
Strategic Advisor to Acquirer

Transaction Overview

Renodis is a leading telecommunications and mobility management services company based in Saint Paul, MN. In November 2022, Renodis acquired 12 Points Consulting. The Fargo-based company is a telecommunications company that primarily works in the hospitality industry. 12 Points Consulting provides hardware equipment and installation and manages the wireline services of several hotels located in the United States for some of the largest brand names in the hospitality industry. With this strategic acquisition, Renodis will enter the hospitality industry and will be able to leverage its resources to attract larger prospects and provide additional offerings to existing customers. This acquisition follows the acquisition of Eric Ryan Corporation which allows Renodis to cross-utilize resources in growing its management services and sourcing offerings across the hospitality and energy industries.

Cherry Tree’s Role:

Cherry Tree served as a buy-side M&A advisor to Renodis, helping the company identify numerous acquisition targets with offerings that align with the company’s growth strategy. 12 Points was a target identified during Cherry Tree’s prospect evaluation. Throughout the process, Cherry Tree assisted Renodis with financial modeling, due diligence, and negotiation of the purchase agreement.

About Renodis:

Renodis is a connectivity technologies consulting, sourcing, and managed services firm. We help enterprises accelerate their copper-to-cloud journey resulting in less frustration from managing legacy technologies and suppliers, better utilized IT talent, and improved support experience for their offices and people. All while client experience skyrockets and IT costs are reduced. A Saint Paul, Minnesota-based company since 2002, Renodis has helped hundreds of organizations with their connectivity technology transformations. Find out more at Renodis.com.

About 12 Points Consulting:

12 Points Consulting provides, services, and supports telecom equipment and provides telecom expense management services in the hospitality industry. Based in Fargo, North Dakota since 2013, 12 Points has become a one-stop-shop for all of their clients’ facility and hardware equipment support needs, including 24/7 support. Find out more at 12PointsConsulting.com.

About Cherry Tree:

Cherry Tree & Associates is a private investment banking firm headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded in 1980, it specializes in M&A transactions for both buyers and sellers of middle market companies. Additionally, it conducts private placements for high quality, entrepreneurially managed growth companies, provides strategic advisory services for CEOs and boards of directors, and prepares fairness opinions and other valuation services. For more information, please visit: www.cherrytree.com.

Cherry Tree & Associates provides investment banking services through our FINRA-licensed broker dealer.

DISCLOSURES
FINRA
SIPC

Cherry Tree Advises Renodis in Acquisition of The Eric Ryan Corporation

Cherry Tree Advises Renodis in Acquisition of The Eric Ryan Corporation

Renodis

Cherry Tree Advises Renodis in Acquisition of The Eric Ryan Corporation

“We are excited to welcome the ERC team and its clients to our company. This is our fifth acquisition on our continued growth journey and will expand our brand along the East Coast. Renodis’ most important priority has always been ensuring the resiliency of our clients’ connectivity, advising on the right technologies, and providing best-in-class managed solutions.”

— Craig Beason, CEO and Owner of Renodis​

INDUSTRY:
Telecommunications
DESCRIPTION:
Utility and Telecommunications Management Services Provider
LOCATION:
Ellwood City, PA
TRANSACTION TYPE:
Strategic Advisor to Acquirer

Transaction Overview

Renodis is a leading telecommunications and mobility management services company based in Saint Paul, MN. In September 2022, Renodis acquired Eric Ryan Corporation (ERC), which is headquartered in Ellwood City, PA, 40 miles north of Pittsburgh. ERC is a provider of utility and telecommunication management services. Following the transaction, ERC will be an entity under the Renodis umbrella. This transaction expands Renodis’ footprint to the East Coast and adds utility management services as a new service offering.

Cherry Tree’s Role

Cherry Tree served as a buy-side M&A advisor to Renodis, helping the company identify numerous acquisition targets with offerings that align with the company’s growth strategy. Renodis was a target identified during Cherry Tree’s prospect evaluation. Throughout the process, Cherry Tree assisted Renodis with financial modeling, due diligence, and negotiation of the purchase agreement.

About Renodis

Renodis is a connectivity technologies consulting, sourcing, and managed services firm. We help enterprises accelerate their copper-to-cloud journey resulting in less frustration from managing legacy technologies and suppliers, better utilized IT talent, and improved support experience for their offices and people. All while client experience skyrockets and IT costs are reduced. A Saint Paul, Minnesota-based company since 2002, Renodis has helped hundreds of organizations with their connectivity technology transformations. Find out more at Renodis.com.

About Eric Ryan Corporation

The Eric Ryan Corporation (ERC) has been in operation since 1990 providing utility and telecommunications consulting and auditing services to over 11,500 customers throughout the US and Canada. Based near Pittsburgh, PA, the company has been a leader in the hospitality industry and one of the nation’s largest and well-recognized utility and telecommunication consulting and management firms. ERC specializes in cost reduction through bill analysis, utility bill consulting, telecommunications bill consulting, rate reviews, and energy management services including energy incentives, energy rebates, and energy efficiency grants. Their telecommunication services include 24/7 help desk, cellular optimization, telecom services pricing, network design, circuit monitoring, security, and new construction management. ERC has provided cost-savings solutions for thousands of businesses in the educational, governmental, hospitality, commercial, retail, health care, non-profit, and industry sectors of the marketplace. Find out more at EricRyan.com.

About Cherry Tree

Cherry Tree & Associates is a private investment banking firm headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded in 1980, it specializes in M&A transactions for both buyers and sellers of middle market companies. Additionally, it conducts private placements for high quality, entrepreneurially managed growth companies, provides strategic advisory services for CEOs and boards of directors, and prepares fairness opinions and other valuation services. For more information, please visit: www.cherrytree.com.

Cherry Tree & Associates provides investment banking services through our FINRA-licensed broker dealer.

DISCLOSURES
FINRA
SIPC

Cherry Tree Advises Regent Education on its Investment from Attain Capital Partners

Cherry Tree Advises Regent Education on its Investment from Attain Capital Partners

Cherry Tree Advises Regent Education on its Investment from Attain Capital Partners

Regent Education Announces Investment from Attain Capital Partners to Accelerate Growth and Innovation

FREDERICK, Md. , June 8, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Regent Education, the leading provider of Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions that automate and simplify the financial aid process for higher education institutions offering traditional and nontraditional enrollment models, today announced a significant growth equity investment led by Attain Capital Partners, with participation from Regent’s current lead investors Chrysalis Ventures, CNF Investments LLC, and New Markets Venture Partners. The company also announced that Greg Baroni, Founder and Managing Partner of Attain Capital Partners, will serve as Chair of the Regent Education Board of Directors.

Attain Capital Partners is a private equity firm which invests in expansion and growth-stage companies with innovative, technology-enabled solutions. A tech entrepreneur himself, Baroni helped launch a distributed learning group known as Blackboard—now part of Anthology—that became a first-mover and an industry leader. He has led a diverse portfolio of successful businesses throughout his career, including KPMG Consulting, Unisys, and more recently, Attain, LLC, selling the company’s federal business division in 2021. He also is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Attain Partners and Attain Sports and Entertainment.

“When it comes to financial aid software, there is none better than Regent. Their comprehensive, cloud-based solution enables institutions to improve business operations and mitigate compliance risks—all while improving the student experience, which is so essential to expanding access to an affordable post-secondary education,” said Baroni. “We look forward to collaborating with the Regent team as we grow the company and continue to simplify the most complex financial aid scenarios for our clients and the students they serve,” he continued.

“Attain Capital brings a rich understanding of higher education, and their guidance and investment provides considerable support to assisting Regent’s continued growth, scale, and financial aid product innovation,” said Jim Hermens, CEO of Regent Education. “Together, we look forward to accelerating Regent’s forward-leaning solutions for the education industry,” he said.

About Regent Education

Regent Education is the leading provider of Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions that automate and simplify the financial aid process for higher education institutions offering traditional and nontraditional enrollment models. Regent’s solutions encompass the automation of financial aid management, verification processes, student financial planning, and state financial aid applications. These solutions offer institutions an unprecedented ability to automate the financial aid process to increase efficiency, mitigate compliance risks, expand enrollment, improve the student experience, and enhance financial management and financial aid lifecycle visibility. Since its inception, Regent has packaged and delivered $5 billion in financial aid to more than 250,000 students. For more information, visit https://regenteducation.com/.

About Attain Capital Partners

Attain Capital Partners invests in growth-stage companies in the knowledge economy. We seek to partner with firms delivering high-value, technology-enabled solutions and services to businesses predominantly focused on serving the public sector markets, including education, government, healthcare, and nonprofits. Our mission is simple: Truly empower teams while building lasting partnerships that make an enduring, positive impact to improve humankind. For more information, please visit www.attain.capital

About New Markets Venture Partners

New Markets Venture Partners is a leading impact investor that accelerates growth-stage education and workforce technology companies.  The New Markets team has decades of experience supporting evidence-based, high growth companies that improve economic and social mobility by leveraging deep relationships with centers of education and workforce innovation.  New Markets prides itself on adding value to its portfolio companies before, during, and after the investment process, with the ultimate goal of improving both individual outcomes and the productivity of America’s education workforce system.  For more information, visit https://newmarketsvp.com/.

About Chrysalis Ventures

Chrysalis Ventures partners with management teams across mid-America to build businesses with enduring value through technology and active collaboration. Chrysalis Ventures manages more than $400 million and has invested in more than 70 companies during its 25-year history.  Chrysalis Ventures partners with talented management teams by providing the business intelligence, market knowledge, deep resources, technological expertise, and financial discipline that are critical to success.  Chrysalis takes a direct, straightforward approach in its work and relationships, challenging itself and its management teams to exceed expectations and deliver superior results. 

Contact
Regent Education
Diane Eves, Marketing Director
(301) 662-5592 or marketing@regenteducation.com

SOURCE Regent Education

 

Minneapolis based Cherry Tree & Associates served as the investment banking advisor to Regent Education on this transaction.

Cherry Tree & Associates provides investment banking services through our FINRA-licensed broker dealer.

DISCLOSURES
FINRA
SIPC

Cherry Tree Advises Aperture Education on its Sale to Riverside Insights, A Portfolio Company of Alpine Investors

Cherry Tree Advises Aperture Education on its Sale to Riverside Insights, A Portfolio Company of Alpine Investors

Aperture Education

Cherry Tree Advises Aperture Education on its Sale to Riverside Insights, A Portfolio Company of Alpine Investors

“After going through a careful selection process, we chose Cherry Tree based on their extensive experience working with edtech companies, their focus on our goals and objectives, and their appreciation for our values and commitment to all stakeholders. We were not disappointed! They provided the context and advice we needed to help us navigate many attractive options along the way, negotiated strongly and effectively on the issues that mattered most to us, and their team worked long hours to ensure our team was always prepared and that the necessary information was provided and correct.”

—Jessica Adamson, CEO, Aperture Education

INDUSTRY:
K-12 Education; Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)

DESCRIPTION:
SaaS provider of research-based social and emotional learning (SEL) assessments to K-12 schools

LOCATION:
Fort Mill, SC

TRANSACTION TYPE:
Sale to PE-Backed Strategic Buyer

Transaction Overview

In June 2022, Aperture Education, the leading provider of research-based social and emotional learning (SEL) assessments for K-12 schools, announced that it had been acquired by Riverside Insights, a leading developer of research-based assessments and analytics. With more than 65 years of combined research and SEL experience, Aperture sets the standard for research-based SEL assessment solutions as it’s DESSA assessment system (based on the CASELTM framework) provides an in-depth, comprehensive view of student social and emotional skills and is entirely strength-based. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The addition of Aperture’s SEL solutions to the Riverside portfolio of research-based ability and achievement assessments will help K-12 educators obtain the most valid, reliable and comprehensive view of each learner. The combined companies have a synergistic goal of enriching one billion lives globally by 2030.

“Riverside and Aperture have very similar company cultures. We share an entrepreneurial energy and have fixed our eyes on future growth,” said Jessica Adamson, CEO at Aperture Education. “With our research-roots, we believe the right insights empower educators to better serve students, and together, we believe we can more effectively reach educators to scale our impact.”

“With Riverside’s strong research tradition blended with Aperture’s SEL product expertise and vision, we are excited to continue our commitment to creating insights to understand the whole learner. Together, we believe that through our assessments, we can make a greater impact in the lives of students and educators” said Rajib Roy, CEO of Riverside Insights.

Cherry Tree’s Role:

Cherry Tree was engaged to advise Aperture Education, its board of directors and its shareholders in identifying the best partner to help the Company achieve its next phase of growth, while maximizing shareholder value. The Cherry Tree team advised Aperture in a process that included both strategic entities as well as growth-oriented investors, where its role included preparing evaluation materials, effectively communicating this compelling investment opportunity to potential investors and buyers, engaging with a wide range of qualified parties, soliciting proposals and negotiating attractive terms, and supporting the management team through the diligence process and finalizing the definitive agreements.

About Aperture Education:

Aperture Education has empowered over 6,500 schools and out-of-school time programs across North America to measure, strengthen, and support social and emotional competence in K-12 youth and educators. The Aperture System includes the DESSA suite of strength-based assessments, CASEL™-aligned intervention strategies, and robust reporting, all in one easy-to-use digital platform. This system enables education leaders to make strategic, data-based decisions about SEL within their organizations. Aperture has supported more than one million students in their social and emotional growth and continues to develop innovative solutions to bring the whole child into focus. To learn more, visit www.ApertureEd.com.

About Riverside Insights:

Riverside Insights, one of the nation’s leading and most long-standing developers of research-based assessments, is led by a powerful mission: to provide insights that help elevate potential and enrich the lives of students, clinical patients, employees, and organizations globally. For more information, visit http://www.RiversideInsights.com.

About Alpine Investors:

Alpine Investors is a people-driven private equity firm that is committed to building enduring companies by working with, learning from, and developing exceptional people. Alpine specializes in investments in companies in the software and services industries. Its PeopleFirst strategy includes a talent program that allows Alpine to bring leadership to situations where additional or new management is needed post-transaction. Alpine is currently investing out of its $2.25 billion eighth fund. For more information, please visit http://www.alpineinvestors.com.

About Cherry Tree & Associates

Cherry Tree & Associates is a private investment banking firm headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Founded in 1980, it specializes in M&A transactions for both buyers and sellers of middle market companies.  Additionally, it conducts private placements for high quality, entrepreneurially managed growth companies, provides strategic advisory services for CEOs and boards of directors, and prepares fairness opinions and other valuation services.

Cherry Tree & Associates provides investment banking services through our FINRA-licensed broker dealer.

DISCLOSURES
FINRA
SIPC