Bain closes on purchase of MSX International

Boston-based Bain Capital Private Equity has closed on its purchase of MSX International for an undisclosed amount.

Reuters reported in November when news of the deal was first reported that Bain Capital had taken out a $323 million loan to back its purchase of MSX.

MSX will remain based in Detroit, and CEO Fred Minturn and the current management team will remain in place.

Bain had internal advisers on the deal. Evercore and SunTrust Bank represented the former MSX ownership group.

MSX had been owned by several private equity owners, some for as long as 10 years, Minturn said. They included Court Square Capital Partners, Prudential Financial Inc., Ardian and Falcon Investment Advisors.

Private equity is not usually that patient. When Bain came along and expressed interest, the former owners were inclined to sell and saw the potential to grow MSX further with Bain's investment, Minturn said.

Bain has great operational partners, strategic thinkers and "resources beyond my wildest dreams," Minturn said.

According to its website, Bain has $75 billion of assets under management.

"It's likely we'll be in the market for mergers and acquisitions … where it makes sense," Minturn said, with future deals focused on taking market share and expanding its services.

MSX provides automotive dealer training and services for global clients and managed service provider services overseeing contract staffing contracts for clients through its Geometrics Results wholly owned subsidiary.

Geometrics Results oversees about $5 billion in contract staffing spending for clients in the automotive, transportation, finance, insurance, energy, defense, industrial, telecommunications, technology and finance sector. Clients include Ford Motor Co., Apple Inc., Oracle Corp. Schlumberger Technology Corp., Gap and Kohl's.

All total, it employs about 6,100 employees across more than 80 countries.

Minturn estimates 2016 revenue will be more than $500 million. That compares to $528 million in 2015, $497 million in 2014 and $450 million in 2013.

MSX continued to see double-digit growth in business in 2015 and 2016, Minturn said, but this year's revenue numbers have been impacted by the current exchange rates in Europe.

Bain was attracted by MSX's market-leading position, industry expertise, customer relationships and growth opportunities, said Ivano Sessa, a managing director of Bain Capital Private Equity, in a statement. 

"We believe that we can complement this top tier management team with our experience of growing global automotive companies, such as Sensata and TI Automotive, and global business process outsourcing companies, such as Genpact, creating a strong partnership for MSXI's international development," he said.