Ex Libris Group Announces Acquisition by Golden Gate Capital

    Ex Libris® Group, a world leader in the provision of library automation solutions, announced today that Golden Gate Capital, a prominent San Francisco-based private equity firm with $12 billion in capital under management, has entered into an agreement to acquire Ex Libris from its current owner, Leeds Equity Partners. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.

    “Ex Libris is proud to join Golden Gate Capital, whose software portfolio represents, on a consolidated basis, the sixth largest software company globally,” commented Matti Shem Tov, Ex Libris Group president and CEO. “Golden Gate Capital’s positive assessment of Ex Libris reaffirms our customers’ and management’s confidence in the strength of the Company, its products, and its future strategy. Golden Gate Capital’s deep technology experience and financial resources will support our continued growth as we carry on developing our software and data services and extending our geographic reach.”

    “Ex Libris is a dynamic and accomplished leader in the library software marketplace,” explained Jake Mizrahi, a managing director of Golden Gate Capital. “The Company has successfully carried out an impressive transition to cloud-computing technology and to a new business model while continuing to sell and support local and hybrid installations of its solutions. We look forward to working with the strong leadership team at Ex Libris to extend the Company’s offerings and facilitate its future growth.”

    Under the new ownership, Ex Libris will remain an independent business based in Jerusalem, run by the current management team.

    The deal is expected to be completed in December 2012.

    About Golden Gate Capital

    Golden Gate Capital is a San Francisco-based investment firm with approximately $12 billion of capital under management. Golden Gate Capital is dedicated to partnering with world-class management teams to invest in change‑intensive, growth‑oriented businesses. The firm targets investments where there is a demonstrable opportunity to significantly enhance a company’s value. The principals of Golden Gate Capital have a long and successful history of investing with management partners across a wide range of industries and transaction types. Other notable software investments sponsored by Golden Gate Capital include Infor, SUSE Linux, SSA Global, Datastream, Micro Focus, Attachmate, Novell, Plant CML, DataDirect, Escalate and Symon.