Specialist manufacturer Fastenex acquires Cofast in landmark multimillion pound deal
Fastenex (Industrial Fasteners) Ltd the holding company of NDB Engineering Ltd – the Midlands based specialist manufacturer for bespoke fasteners – has secured a multi-million pound funding package from leading fintech SME lender ThinCats to acquire Company Fasteners Limited (COFAST). Based in Plymouth, COFAST supplies fastenings and bearings to some of the largest industries in the South West including the Devonport Royal Dockyard.
This acquisition will give Fastenex significant strategic advantage in the key naval and defence markets utilising Cofast’s excellent reputation for quality and service.
Based in Willenhall, West Midlands, Fastenex was established in February 2017 by joint shareholders Andrew Williams and Rebecca Dainter to purchase NDB Engineering through a management buyout. Capitalising on the lack of specialist fasteners in the market, the business’s success stemmed from its ability to produce a niche range of products across a range of industries which include: defence, aerospace, naval and energy.
Due to the market’s specialist nature, the relative high levels of customer concentration in the business and the size of transaction the shareholders knew that the high street banks wouldn’t be able to facilitate a deal that worked for them. Hence they approached corporate finance adviser Martin Poole from Baldwins Corporate Finance to support them in finding a funder who take the time to fully understand the transaction, the business and the future strategy of the combined businesses.
After a competitive process, ThinCats was introduced to the shareholders of Fastenex by Baldwins Corporate Finance, who liaised with the ThinCats team headed by director, regional business development, Geraint Regan. ThinCats worked closely with the shareholders and their advisers (Martin Poole and Dan Crumpton from Baldwins, Richard Underwood from Legal Clarity and David Wright from Nicklins) to gain a close understanding of the business and to provide the purchase consideration for the deal. ThinCats were advised by James Dyson and Renata Rai from Freeths.
Rebecca Dainter, director of Fastenex Ltd: “Our business is built on developing and maintaining long-term relationships with clients and other industry experts. So, when we were looking to acquire Cofast, we wanted to deal with someone we trust. We knew high-street banks couldn’t facilitate the kind of deal that would be best for our business. ThinCats came highly recommended by our advisers and Geraint proved them worthy of the recommendation by facilitating a great deal to support our future growth plans.”
Geraint Regan, director regional business development for ThinCats, said: “ThinCats’ tailored funding facilities are ideally suited to businesses going through event-driven change, such as management buyouts and buy-ins, exits for private equity and mergers & acquisitions. We were delighted to support Andrew, Rebecca and their team in their acquisition of Cofast and wish them every success in their growth strategy.”
