Houlihan Lokey Advises The London Institute of Banking & Finance

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that it advised The London Institute of Banking & Finance (LIBF) on its sale to IU Group, a portfolio company of Oakley Capital.

Founded in 1879, LIBF is a leading provider of financial services and banking-related education and qualifications to UK and international students, having taught more than 1.5 million students since its inception. LIBF’s offering covers Higher Education, Corporate, and Professional Qualifications and Schools programmes, whilst also having established numerous international partnerships. LIBF gained its Royal Charter in 1987 and, in 1996, developed the first professional award linked to a university degree. Subsequently, LIBF secured Taught Degree Awarding Powers in 2010 and was granted University College title in 2013.

Founded in 2000 and based in Munich, IU Group is the owner of IU International University of Applied Sciences (IU), Germany’s largest university with more than 100,000 students. With a broad portfolio of more than 200 degree programmes in English and German, IU delivers a diversified mix of online degrees, dual studies programmes, part-time studies, and face-to-face learning in Germany and across a rapidly growing presence in international markets. Oakley Capital invested in IU Group in 2017, and LIBF represents IU Group’s first acquisition outside Germany.

Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive financial advisor to LIBF.

This transaction builds on Houlihan Lokey’s market-leading position in the education and training sector in general and the higher education, professional training, and apprenticeship market in particular, in which the Houlihan Lokey deal team has advised on i) the sales of FutureLearn to Global University Systems; ICS Learn to Skill & You; BIMM Institute to ICG; The College of Law to Montagu Equity; and BPP Education Group to Apollo Global Education, as well as ii) the acquisitions of BPP by TDR Capital and its subsequent acquisitions of Digital Marketing Institute, Firebrand Training, and Estio Training; Arden University, The University of Law, and LCCM by Global University Systems; Times Higher Education and Inside Higher Ed by Inflexion; University of Durham’s Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring by Cambridge University; Becker Professional Education and OnCourse Learning by Colibri; Corndel by THI Investments; and Lifetime Training by Silverfleet Capital.

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