Houlihan Lokey Advises Matawan

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that Matawan, a leading smart mobility platform offering mission-critical services to public transport networks and aiming to make everyday travel easier for commuters, transport authorities, and operators, has entered into exclusive negotiations for a majority investment from Antin Infrastructure Partners.

Based in Paris, Lyon, Mâcon, and Sophia Antipolis, France, and founded in 2012, Matawan offers an end-to-end mobility platform that breaks the silos in public transit. Its cloud-based solutions serve as the infrastructure backbone of modern transportation systems, enabling all essential functions. Matawan simplifies the usage of public transport networks across modes (bus, tram, rail, bikes, ferry, etc.) via account-based ticketing, optimises supply and demand via AI, and provides travellers and operators with reliable information and quality of service.

Matawan today serves more than 300 transport networks across six countries in Europe and North America and is part of French Tech 120, a French government-led programme designed to support the 120 most promising French scale-ups with the potential to become global leaders. It plans to continue growing its business both organically and through acquisitions, while entering new geographies.

Antin would be investing in Matawan alongside founder Jean-Paul Medioni, who would have a seat on the company’s Supervisory Board, CEO Jérome Trédan and its management team.

Upon closing, this investment would be the seventh by Antin’s €1.2 billion NextGen Infrastructure Fund I. NextGen invests in companies that have proven business models and technologies that require substantial capital to scale to become the next generation of infrastructure, often with a strong focus on sustainability.

Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet and Nicolas Mallet, Senior Partner and Partner, respectively, at Antin, declared: “Matawan is a great fit for our NextGen strategy. The company is perfectly positioned to become a leader in public transport by facilitating the transition to smart, intermodal, and interoperable networks, benefiting from a fundamental shift in commuting patterns and the need to decarbonise mobility. We are greatly looking forward to working with Matawan’s teams to help take the company to the next level.”

Mr. Tredan added, “We are thrilled to have the backing of Antin as the company enters a new growth chapter. Antin is the right partner to help us consolidate our French and European leadership, allow us to accelerate our expansion in Europe and North America, and execute our vision of making everyday commuting easier for all, for a more sustainable future.”

Mr. Medioni concluded: “I am particularly proud of the work accomplished with the teams over these exciting years to promote public transport across territories through digital technology and innovation. I am delighted to see the Matawan project take on a new dimension with the support of Antin and a strong management team. I am very motivated by this new chapter in our history and confident in Matawan’s ability to reach new heights.”

The transaction remains subject to customary works council information procedures and regulatory approval and is expected to close by the end of 2025.

Houlihan Lokey served as financial advisor to Matawan.

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