Houlihan Lokey Advises Colibri Group

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that Colibri Group (Colibri), a portfolio company of Gridiron Capital, has acquired Becker Professional Education (Becker) and OnCourse Learning from Adtalem Global Education (NYSE:ATGE). Colibri purchased these businesses as part of the divestiture of its Financial Services Segment, which includes Becker Professional Education, OnCourse Learning, and ACAMS (Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists). ACAMS was purchased by Wendel, which bid in a consortium with Colibri.

Headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, Colibri is a leading provider of career lifecycle management for mandatory professional education solutions across real estate, healthcare, financial services, and valuation and property services. It specializes in comprehensive education solutions for professionals to successfully pursue and maintain their licenses and provides training for both qualifying and continuing education. With this agreement, Colibri adds leading capabilities in accounting, governance, risk and compliance, and mortgage education to its portfolio of professional education services.

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Becker is the leader in the CPA (Certified Public Accountant) exam review industry, offering a full accounting career lifecycle solution from training to licensing to continuing education. Founded in 1957, Becker’s global presence includes more than 2,900 partners—including accounting firms, societies, corporations, government agencies, and universities.

Headquartered in Brookfield, Wisconsin, OnCourse Learning is a leading educational technology provider for governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) licensing and webinar solutions for the banking, credit union, state banking associations (SBA), and mortgage industries. Founded in 2007, OnCourse Learning has delivered pre-licensing, continuing education, professional development, and compliance training to financial institutions and 190,000+ mortgage professionals.

Gridiron Capital, LLC, is a middle-market private equity firm focused on investments in the branded consumer, B2B and B2C services, and niche industrial spaces. Gridiron partners with founders, entrepreneurs, and management teams to build market-leading businesses and enhance value.

Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive advisor to Colibri and Gridiron Capital. This transaction highlights Houlihan Lokey’s sector knowledge, financial sponsors relationships, and continued success in the training and education vertical.