Exponent Poised to Buy UK Arm of Alarm Company ADT
Private equity firm Exponent is among a group of suitors who are weighing a takeover of the UK arm of ADT, one of Britain’s biggest suppliers of residential security systems.
A report from Sky News suggests that Exponent, which has owned companies including Ambassador Theatre Group, Big Bus Tours and the publisher of the Racing Post newspaper, is part of a cohort considering buying the business from US owner Johnson Controls International (JCI).
The auction of the UK arm is being handled by bankers at Citi and has drawn interest from a number of private equity bidders, according to sources.
It is thought that the UK division, which is one of the biggest players in the British market, could fetch in the region of £150m. Other parts of ADT's international operations are also being sold off by JCI.
In June, the company announced the disposal of its unit in Mexico to Verisure, the security systems group which this month went public in Stockholm. Roughly £3bn was raised from a share sale as part of the deal.
ADT was founded as American District Telegraph in 1874 and is one of the oldest private security brands in the world. It's international operations are owned separately to its US business, which is part of New York-listed ADT.
