Munich-based Flix SE, a travel technology company, announced on Thursday that EQT Group and Kühne Holding have acquired a 35 per cent minority stake worth around €1B.
This investment values the company at over €3B, reports Bloomberg.
As part of this investment, shares will also be purchased from existing shareholders to establish a long-term anchor holding in Flix.
The transaction is pending customary conditions and regulatory approvals before its completion.
“We are delighted to welcome EQT Future and Kühne Holding as strong and purpose-driven investors with proven track records of building upon sustainable long-term investment strategies. Their capital and know-how will be a strong asset to our company’s overall strategic vision. We couldn’t ask for better partners to embark on the next chapter of Flix’s journey”, says André Schwämmlein, CEO and Co-Founder of Flix.
30% increase in total revenue
The investment comes at a time when Flix is experiencing significant growth and strategic expansion.
In 2023, the company achieved a 30 per cent increase in total revenue, reaching €2B for the first time, and recorded an adjusted EBITDA of €104M.
This growth allows Flix to focus on expanding its global footprint, revolutionising the North American bus market, and scaling FlixTrain to meet the increasing demand for alternative rail services in Germany.
To further strengthen its geographical presence, Flix has recently entered two of the most important bus markets worldwide — Chile and India.
The company’s global footprint now stretches across 43 countries worldwide.
Additionally, FlixBus is significantly expanding its services in the UK, Portugal, and Ukraine and has launched in Norway and Finland.
The investors
Kühne Holding AG, based in Switzerland, focuses on investments in the logistics and transport sector. It holds a majority stake in Kühne+Nagel International AG and is the largest single shareholder of Hapag-Lloyd AG, Deutsche Lufthansa AG, and Brenntag SE.
Dominik de Daniel, CEO of Kühne Holding AG, comments, “Flix is driving the next generation of collective transport. The Kühne Holding is proud to actively support them as a strategic partner in their next phase of expansion. Over the past few months, we have established a great relationship with the colleagues of EQT Future. We have great confidence in André Schwämmlein and his team and very much look forward to supporting Flix’s future in a beneficial partnership.”
Karl Gernandt, Chairman Kühne Holding AG, adds, “As one of the largest strategic investors in the transport and mobility sector, the Kühne Holding is now taking a further step into the market for collective transport by bus. With Flix’s proven asset-light operating model, we see great synergies with our other investments in the transport sector. Furthermore, we want to support the expansion strategy of their international network. We are building on the great successes that Flix has achieved in establishing the bus as the leading sustainable means of transport – for more than a decade in Europe and now also overseas.”
EQT is a purpose-driven global investment organisation with €242B in total assets under management €132B in fee-generating assets under management), within two business segments – Private Capital and Real Assets.
EQT owns portfolio companies and assets in Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas and supports them in achieving sustainable growth, operational excellence, and market leadership.
“EQT Future backs high-quality, growing companies that have the potential to be sustainability leaders in their fields. Flix is the perfect example of this. We are deeply impressed by what Andréand his team have built, having developed Flix from a startup into a clear global market leader, operating in 43 countries,” says Andreas Aschenbrenner, Founding Partner and Deputy Head of the EQT Future advisory team.
“For us at EQT, it is always about providing more than capital. We are proud to partner with Kühne Holding, one of the leading transportation and logistics investors, and together with André and his team, we are excited to support Flix’s strategic growth agenda over the long term. We aim to ensure Flix’s low-carbon solution to long-distance travel reaches even more people across the world and believe that Flix is on a path to being the category-defining player in mass ground transportation, with huge potential to become a household name in the industry and beyond,” adds Aschenbrenner.
