Strategic report / Sector review: Business services
Business services portfolio
OCI valuation
Phenna Group
£109.9m
Phenna
One of the fastest-growing TICC groups globally.
Phenna continued to perform well in H1 2025 with the business seeing continued organic growth as well as growth via M&A, maintaining its position as one of the fastest-growing TICC groups globally. For the six-month period ending June 2025, Phenna reported double-digit organic revenue growth versus prior year and continued to be one of the top five contributors to OCI’s Total NAV Return. The company built upon its accretive M&A strategy with 11 acquisitions completed during the first half of the year, at an average of c.7x EV/EBITDA multiple.
Steer Automotive
The UK's leading B2B automotive services platform.
Steer Automotive (‘Steer’), acquired in April 2024, is the UK’s largest and fastest-growing independent collision repair group. Steer has continued to lead the consolidation of the market, completing 11 add-on acquisitions since signing and taking the Group from 98 sites to c.200 sites as at June 2025. Recent successful M&A activity includes the acquisition of React, which completed in April 2025 and added an additional two sites. Post period end, there remains a robust M&A pipeline, with three deals in due diligence and a further 29 deals in initial discussions, positioning Steer as the only scaled acquirer active in the UK market.
OCI valuation
Steer Automotive
£75.2m
OCI valuation
vLex
£66.1m
vLex
A cloud-based legal information subscription platform.
vLex enjoyed strong performance in H1 2025 with continued growth in its AI-powered legal workflow platform and successful market penetration. For the six-month period ending June 2025, vLex reported revenue and EBITDA growth of 21% and 57% respectively versus prior year. The business continues to show strong recurrency with over 95% of revenues coming from subscriptions and delivering annual recurring revenue (‘ARR’) growth of 24% versus the prior year. Vincent AI, the fastest growing division, now represents approximately 20% of ARR and continues showing positive momentum among both US blue-chip customers and the Small Law division. Following the announced acquisition by Clio at a US$1 billion valuation, signed in June 2025, vLex is positioned to further develop its AI capabilities and explore cross-selling opportunities. The transaction contributed 30 pence of net valuation gain to OCI's Total NAV Return, making it the largest contributor to OCI’s Total NAV Return in H1 2025.
TechInsights
TechInsights is the authoritative semiconductor and microelectronics intelligence platform supporting clients in innovation and decision-making through independent research and analysis.
TechInsights' H1 2025 performance has been one of the biggest drivers of OCI’s NAV growth, contributing six pence, with continued subscription revenue growth, supported by strong renewal rates from existing customers. For the six-month period ending June 2025, TechInsights reported double-digit revenue and EBITDA growth versus prior year. Recurring revenues continued to grow, now making up 82% of total revenues, underscoring the shift towards a more predictable and resilient revenue base. This performance came against the backdrop of a more buoyant semiconductor market in H1 25, driven by surging demand for logic and memory chips in AI, data centre and advanced computing applications.
OCI valuation
TechInsights
£50.4m
OCI valuation
ProductLife Group
£44.9m
ProductLife Group
A leading player in regulatory and compliance services to the global life sciences industry.
For the six-month period ending June 2025, PLG reported revenue slightly behind prior year but adjusted EBITDA growth of 18%, driven by cost-saving initiatives to offset the slight decline in revenue. The company successfully completed two acquisitions during the first half (c.€3m in acquired EBITDA), at an average EV/EBITDA multiple of c.6.5x. With the company having scaled >4x in size since 2022, the C-level has been upgraded with the key hires of experienced top managers for CFO, CRO, COO, and CHRO to ensure the expertise needed to guide the business through the next phase of growth. The broader leadership continues to focus on both organic growth and M&A, while driving various operational projects, including IT systems implementation, integration of historic acquisitions, and transformation towards a new Group target operating model.
Liberty Dental Group
Establishing an independent business to become a leader in the global dental lab market.
Liberty demonstrated continued growth in H1 2025, with M&A execution being the main driver. For the six-month period ending June 2025, Liberty reported revenue growth of 9%, while EBITDA remained flat compared to the same period in the prior year. Performance varied by geography, with Germany showing strong revenue growth of 11%, Netherlands remaining flat due to market softness, and Norway delivering exceptional growth of 74% in revenue and 87% in EBITDA, driven by M&A. Seven acquisitions were completed in the first half of 2025, adding c.€2 million of EBITDA. Alongside M&A execution, management maintained focus on cost control and continued to scout new opportunities in core markets.
OCI valuation
Liberty Dental Group
£43.2m
OCI valuation
Konzept & Marketing
£13.9m
Konzept & Marketing
A leading independent Managing General Agent in the German personal, non-life insurance market.
K&M continued to perform well in H1 2025. For the six-month period ending June 2025, K&M reported revenue and EBITDA growth of 6% and 25% respectively versus prior year. Total net premiums grew 8% year-on-year driven by healthy growth in standard lines with new contracts as planned, lower than expected cancellation rates, and pricing growth in line with market. The Portfolio Optimisation Service division performed slightly behind plan but is expected to improve following recent customer conversions.
JBMC
A fast-growing Italian management and IT consultancy firm focused on the Financial Services sector.
Join Business Management Consulting (‘JBMC’) was acquired in June 2025. For the six-month period ending June 2025, JBMC reported revenue and EBITDA growth of 8% and 9% respectively versus prior year. Founded in 2013 and headquartered in Siena, JBMC delivers operational improvement, IT project management, digital transformation, data and other tech-enabled projects for leading banks, insurance firms and payment companies in Italy. Over the past five years, the company has grown revenue at a compound annual growth rate of over 20%, outpacing the broader market. The company operates in a c.€5 billion consulting and IT services market that is benefitting from a digitisation wave as Italy catches up with higher EU average investment in IT modernisation. JBMC is in advanced discussions with its first add-on acquisition, a data and analytics consulting boutique, and maintains a strong pipeline of additional targets currently under review.
OCI valuation
JBMC
£8.3m
OCI valuation
Infravadis
£4.5m
Infravadis
A tech-enabled platform focused on the European underground infrastructure maintenance market.
Infravadis was acquired in May 2025. For the six-month period ending June 2025, the company reported EBITDA growth of 9% compared to the prior year. As its first acquisition, Infravadis acquired a majority stake in Abfluss Schäfer Group, a regional leader in the Rhein-Main area for sewage cleaning, pipe inspection, and repair services, which has consistently delivered double-digit annual growth rates. With this foundation, Infravadis is positioning itself to become a European market and technology leader in its segment. The company is focused on systematically rolling out efficient, proven processes across future acquisitions, creating a strong platform for long-term growth and consolidation in a highly fragmented industry.