Alantra advises Livingbridge on its investment in Semafone, a leading data security and compliance SaaS platform

Jun 2021

Buy-side advisory

Alantra has advised Livingbridge on its majority investment in market-leading provider of data security and compliance solutions, Semafone. This investment will enable the business’s accelerated growth in the US and internationally, and provide liquidity to existing shareholders.

Founded in 2009, Semafone provides secure cloud, hybrid and on-premises solutions to contact centers and businesses that accept payments. It enables organizations to collect personal data securely across all channels including telephone, webchat, social media, email, SMS, and QR codes. Through its patented data capture methods, sensitive information is collected directly from the customer for processing. These methods prevent any data breaches, protecting against the risk of fraud and the associated reputational damage, and ensuring compliance with industry regulations.

The company supports customers in 26 countries on five continents. Clients include Amica Mutual Insurance, British Sky Broadcasting, BT Group, Harley Davidson, Pethealth, Rogers Communications and Sutter Health.

“We are excited to announce our partnership with Livingbridge, given their significant prior experience in both communications and security technology, and their impressive track record with high-growth companies,” said Gary E. Barnett, CEO of Semafone. “Livingbridge’s investment will allow us to continue to enhance our global leadership through continued solution innovation, global expansion and enhancing security and consumer experiences for our rapidly expanding customer base.”

“Semafone is widely recognized as a best-in-class solution, sitting at the complex intersection of fast-paced customer communications, payments, data security and regulatory compliance,” said Curt Kahn of Livingbridge. “There are strong market tailwinds reinforcing the need for consumer data protection and we believe Semafone is well-positioned to capitalize on these.  At Livingbridge, we have a global network and a great deal of experience supporting the growth of companies across different markets including North America, EMEA and the APAC region. We look forward to partnering with Gary and the team to support the acceleration of their growth plan.

This transaction shortly follows a series of software transactions advised by Alantra including Apax Partners’ acquisition of Odigo, Inflexion’s investment into Digital Wholesale Solutions, Perwyn’s investment in Agilitas, and the sale of Giacom to Digital Wholesale Solutions.