BOSTON, MA —
Riverside Partners is pleased to announce that the previously announced sale of its portfolio company FirstLight Fiber (“FirstLight”), a leading fiber-optic bandwidth infrastructure services provider operating in the Northeast U.S., to Antin Infrastructure Partners (“Antin”) has been completed. With the sale to Antin finalized, Riverside has now exited its investment in FirstLight.
Riverside Partners first acquired FirstLight Fiber in 2010 and during the subsequent six years transformed the business into a leading regional fiber provider. As majority owner of FirstLight, Riverside helped drive FirstLight’s growth by supporting significant investment in capital expenditures to expand FirstLight’s fiber network and by completing three highly strategic acquisitions, expanding the Company’s fiber optic network into New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine.
Riverside sold majority interest in FirstLight to Oak Hill Capital Partners (“Oak Hill”) in September 2016 and retained a minority investment in the company and a seat on the Company’s board of directors. In the subsequent two years, Riverside remained a strong partner to Oak Hill and FirstLight’s management team and made further equity investments in FirstLight to support additional strategic acquisitions which, coupled with strong organic growth, enabled FirstLight to quadruple in size.
Riverside Partners has been an integral partner to FirstLight and a key force behind its success both under Riverside and Oak Hill’s majority ownership. I am excited about the next chapter for FirstLight and thankful for the opportunity Riverside provided me to lead this amazing Company. Kurt Van Wagenen CEO of FirstLight
"We are thrilled to have been part of FirstLight’s transformation and growth,” commented Steven F. Kaplan, General Partner at Riverside Partners and member of FirstLight’s Board of Directors. “Our business is predicated on being true strategic partners to our companies and helping them build world-class organizations. FirstLight’s strong senior leadership team, dedicated employee base and leading fiber-optic network are a testament to our investment strategy.”
Kurt Van Wagenen, CEO of FirstLight added, “Riverside Partners has been an integral partner to FirstLight and a key force behind its success both under Riverside and Oak Hill’s majority ownership. I am excited about the next chapter for FirstLight and thankful for the opportunity Riverside provided me to lead this amazing Company.”
About Riverside Partners LLC
Founded in 1989, Riverside Partners is a middle market private equity firm currently investing Riverside Fund V, L.P. The fund focuses on growth-oriented companies primarily in the healthcare and technology industries. Riverside Partners is particularly experienced at partnering with founders, owners and management teams and it brings substantial domain expertise and operating experience to its portfolio companies. For more information visit www.riversidepartners.com.
Riverside Partners Contact:
Steven Kaplan
General Partner
Riverside Partners LLC
skaplan@riversidepartners.com
617-351-2820