BURLINGTON, Mass., April 14, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Ascend Learning,
LLC ("Ascend"), a leading provider of educational content, software
and analytics solutions, today announced that private equity funds
managed by Blackstone (NYSE: BX)
("Blackstone") and Canada Pension
Plan Investment Board ("CPPIB") have signed a definitive agreement
to acquire Ascend from private equity funds advised by Providence
Equity Partners and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan. This
transaction is Blackstone's second
investment as part of its core private equity strategy, which is
specifically designed to hold private equity investments in
exceptionally high-quality companies for longer periods of time
than traditional private equity funds. CPPIB is a large global
institutional investor holding long-term ownership stakes in
certain private companies with resilient business models and
high-growth potential.
Ascend Learning provides technology-based educational content
and software tools for students, educational institutions and
employers. The company's products span the full learning continuum
and include admissions testing, educational content, test
preparation, professional certifications and continuing
education. Ascend has a particular focus on high-growth
healthcare and other licensure-driven occupations.
"We are excited to work with Blackstone and CPPIB and know their
partnership will be a tremendous asset for the next phase of our
company's growth," said Greg
Sebasky, CEO of Ascend Learning. "We're also grateful for
the partnership we've had with Providence and Ontario Teachers' and the
outstanding growth we've experienced working with them."
Peter Wilde, Managing Director at
Providence Equity, said, "We have enjoyed a long and productive
partnership during our ten-year investment in Ascend. Greg and the
Ascend team have generated consistent growth while delivering
strong outcomes to students and institutions. We are
gratified to have played a part in Ascend's success and have no
doubt Ascend will continue to grow and innovate."
The transaction is expected to close following customary closing
conditions and regulatory approvals. Barclays acted as lead
financial advisor to Ascend and Providence Equity Partners on
the transaction, and Bank of America served as
co-advisor. Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP acted as legal
advisor to Ascend and Providence Equity Partners; Simpson
Thacher & Bartlett LLP acted as legal advisor to
Blackstone and CPPIB; and Paul,
Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP acted as legal advisor
to Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan.
About Ascend Learning
Ascend Learning is a leading
provider of educational content and software tools for students,
educational institutions and employers. With products that span the
learning continuum, Ascend Learning focuses on high-growth careers
in a range of industries, with a special focus on healthcare and
other licensure-driven occupations. Ascend Learning products, from
testing to certification, are used by physicians, emergency medical
professionals, nurses, certified personal trainers, financial
advisors, skilled trades professionals and insurance brokers. Learn
more at www.ascendlearning.com.
About Blackstone
Blackstone is one of the world's leading
investment firms. We seek to create positive economic impact and
long-term value for our investors, the companies we invest in, and
the communities in which we work. We do this by using extraordinary
people and flexible capital to help companies solve problems. Our
asset management businesses, with over $360
billion in assets under management, include investment
vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and
equity, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary
funds, all on a global basis. Further information is available
at www.blackstone.com. Follow Blackstone on Twitter @Blackstone.
About Canada Pension Plan Investment Board
Canada
Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) is a professional investment
management organization that invests the funds not needed by the
Canada Pension Plan (CPP) to pay current benefits on behalf of 20
million contributors and beneficiaries. In order to build a
diversified portfolio of CPP assets, CPPIB invests in public
equities, private equities, real estate, infrastructure and fixed
income instruments. Headquartered in Toronto, with offices in Hong Kong, London, Luxembourg, Mumbai, New York
City, São Paulo and Sydney,
CPPIB is governed and managed independently of the Canada Pension
Plan and at arm's length from governments. At December 31, 2016, the CPP Fund totalled
$298.1 billion. For more information
about CPPIB, please visit www.cppib.com or follow us
on LinkedIn or Twitter.
About Providence Equity Partners
Providence is a premier, global asset
management firm with $50 billion in
assets under management across complementary private equity and
credit businesses. Providence
pioneered a sector focused approach to private equity investing
with the vision that a dedicated team of industry experts could
build exceptional companies of enduring value. Since the firm's
inception in 1989, Providence has
invested in more than 160 companies and is the leading equity
investment firm focused on the media, communications, education and
information industries. Providence
is headquartered in Providence, RI
and also has offices in New York,
London, Hong Kong, and Singapore. For more information on Providence
Equity, please visit www.provequity.com.
About Ontario Teachers'
The Ontario Teachers'
Pension Plan ("Ontario Teachers'") is Canada's largest single-profession pension
plan, with $175.6 billion in net
assets as of December 31, 2016. It
holds a diverse global portfolio of assets, approximately 80% of
which is managed in-house, and has earned an average annualized
rate of return of 10.1% since the plan's founding in 1990. Ontario
Teachers' is an independent organization headquartered in
Toronto. Its Asia-Pacific region office is located in
Hong Kong and its Europe, Middle
East & Africa region
office is in London. The
defined-benefit plan, which is fully funded, invests and
administers the pensions of the province of Ontario's 318,000 active and retired teachers.
For more information, visit http://www.otpp.com and follow us on
Twitter @OtppInfo.
Media
Contacts:
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Ascend
Learning
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Nancy Mays
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Director,
Communications
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T: 1 913 269
2352
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Nancy.mays@ascendlearning.com
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Blackstone
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Matt
Anderson
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Senior Vice
President, Global Public Affairs
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T: +1 212 390
2472
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Matthew.Anderson@Blackstone.com
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Canada Pension
Plan Investment Board
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Dan Madge
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Mei
Mavin
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Senior Manager, Media
Relations
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Director, Corporate
Communications
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T: +1 416 868
8629
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T: +1 646 564
4920
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dmadge@cppib.com
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mmavin@cppib.com
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Providence
Equity
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Patrick
Scanlan
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Sard Verbinnen &
Co
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(212)
687-8080
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Prov-SVC@sardverb.com
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Ontario Teachers'
Pension Plan
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Deborah
Allan
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Managing Director,
Communications and Media Relations
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(416)
730-5347
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deborah_allan@otpp.com
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SOURCE Ascend Learning, LLC