EQT Sells Remaining Stake in Azelis Group
The investment organization EQT has completed the final sale of its remaining stake in Azelis Group NV. Azelis is a global service provider for the specialty chemicals and food ingredients industry. During EQT's ownership, Azelis expanded its revenue and EBITA through organic growth and acquisitions.
EQT's journey with Azelis began in November 2018, when it acquired the specialty chemicals distributor from previous private equity owner Apax Partners. Before Apax, Azelis had been owned by the firm 3i since 2006, following its initial formation from a merger in 2001. Under EQT's ownership, Azelis pursued an aggressive expansion strategy, executing 24 add-on acquisitions. This rapid growth through acquisition, combined with organic expansion, led to the company nearly doubling its adjusted EBITA during the period of EQT's stewardship. A major milestone was the company's initial public offering on the Euronext Brussels exchange in September 2021. The IPO was one of the largest in the exchange's history, raising approximately €1.8 billion and valuing Azelis at €6.1 billion. The capital was intended to reduce debt and fund further acquisitions. Following the IPO, EQT began to gradually reduce its holdings. For example, a sale of 20 million shares in early 2025 generated proceeds of roughly €366 million for the sellers. Another sale of 44 million shares later that year reduced EQT's stake to approximately 10%. The final transaction consisted of the sale of roughly 24 million shares, representing the last of EQT's 10% stake. This concluding sale generated aggregate gross proceeds of approximately €190 million.
