Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE: SF) today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire ACXIT Capital Partners, a leading independent corporate finance and financial advisory firm serving European middle-market clients and entrepreneurs. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
ACXIT Capital Partners, with a team of about 50 professionals, operates primarily out of offices in Frankfurt, Zurich, and Munich. Since its founding in 1999, the firm has successfully completed nearly 500 transactions, including mergers & acquisitions, capital markets, and debt advisory and restructuring.
ACXIT’s business is focused on providing advisory and capital solutions to emerging companies and is aligned with high-growth sectors of the global economy, including healthcare and technology. ACXIT also maintains strong positions in additional key verticals including industrials, real estate, and consumer/retail.
Through this acquisition, we are extending our European footprint further into strategically important European markets, most notably Germany, This highly complementary combination with ACXIT Capital Partners allows us to accelerate the growth of our investment banking business by adding more geographical breadth and regional market expertise to our platform. It also forms a natural next step following the combination with Mainfirst in 2019.”
Rob Mann, Head of European Investment Banking at Stifel.
Stifel already has a formidable investment banking presence in the UK and Europe with more than 180 professionals based in the region’s major financial centers.
Partnering with Stifel instantly gives us greater access to international markets, the ability to call on a deeper pool of industry expertise, and also enables us to deliver a broader set of products and solutions to our clients, Together, we have the necessary building blocks to create an even more formidable investment banking business throughout continental Europe.”
Johannes H. Lucas, Founder and Senior Managing Partner of ACXIT Capital Partners.
The Stifel network will substantially add critical resources to our business, giving us a powerful international platform to leverage, In particular, it will improve our reach into the vast U.S. investor base for growth capital, and provide enhanced capabilities to clients with cross-border aspirations.”
Thomas Klack, Senior Managing Partner of ACXIT Capital Partners.
After the closing of the transaction, Johannes Lucas and Thomas Klack will become Co-Heads of DACH (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland) Advisory at Stifel. ACXIT Senior Managing Partners Jens Tschauder and Tobias Warkus will also join Stifel’s DACH Management Board.
We have been excited by the remarkable growth of our European investment banking business, which is now an integral part of our global investment bank, We are pleased to welcome the entire ACXIT team to Stifel, as we create more opportunities to leverage Stifel’s deep domain expertise across the strategically important DACH region.”
Brad Raymond, Global Head of Investment Banking at Stifel.
About Stifel
Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE: SF) is a financial services holding company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, that conducts its banking, securities, and financial services business through several wholly owned subsidiaries. Stifel’s broker-dealer clients are served in the United States through Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, including its Eaton Partners business division; Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc.; Miller Buckfire & Co., LLC and Stifel Independent Advisors, LLC. The Company’s broker-dealer affiliates provide securities brokerage, investment banking, trading, investment advisory, and related financial services to individual investors, professional money managers, businesses, and municipalities. Stifel Bank and Stifel Bank & Trust offer a full range of consumer and commercial lending solutions. Stifel Trust Company, N.A. and Stifel Trust Company Delaware, N.A. offer trust and related services.
About ACXIT Capital Partners
ACXIT Capital Partners is a leading international corporate finance and financial advisory firm for mid-market clients and entrepreneurs in Europe and beyond. Since 1999, ACXIT offers its clients comprehensive corporate finance advisory services including M&A and capital markets advisory as well as restructuring, debt, and strategic advisory. As an independent, privately owned firm, ACXIT maintains offices in Frankfurt, Munich and Zurich as well as strong alliances in the UK and France.