Warburg Pincus taps SAP exec to advise on tech deal spree – source

LONDON (Reuters) – U.S. investment firm Warburg Pincus has appointed SAP executive Brian Duffy as a senior adviser in its technology team as it bets on the digital transformation of its portfolio companies while also scouting for new tech targets.

The U.S. firm, which is known as a “growth investor” as it deploys cash to support companies that offer strong earnings potential in industries that have profited from the COVID-19 pandemic, has heavily invested in the telecoms, media and technology (TMT) sector since the start of the pandemic and will rely on Duffy’s expertise to identify new investment opportunities globally, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Duffy will be based in Chicago where he will continue working with SAP as “president of cloud” overseeing the strategy to drive more customers to cloud computing.

Duffy, who has spent 16 years at SAP in various roles including head of its global strategic initiatives, will work closely with Warburg Pincus’ European tech team led by managing director Flavio Porciani whose recent deals include a 5.1 billion-euro deal to buy Deutsche Telekom’s Dutch unit, T-Mobile Netherlands, as part of a consortium with Apax.

The 41-year-old Irishman will frequently travel to London where Warburg Pincus’ European co-heads, Adarsh Sarma and René Obermann, have both a technology background and remain hungry for sector expansion, the source said.

Warburg Pincus has invested more than $24 billion in technology businesses since it was founded in 1966.

In 2020 it clinched deals for Norwegian software firm Visma and UK full-fibre broadband provider Community Fibre while earlier this year it backed Israeli fintech firm Personetics Technologies and British analytics software firm Quantexa.

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