Carlyle buys The Foundry

Carlyle purchased the majority stake for an undisclosed sum from Advent Venture partners, which backed a management buyout of the firm in June 2009.

Since 2009, headcount at The Foundry has risen from 35 to more than 100. Revenue increased from £6.1 million to £14.9 million in 2010.

Managing director and co-head of Carlyle’s European Technology Partners team, Michael Wand, said the private equity firm was impressed by the “high quality of the products and talented management team”.

Wand said Carlyle planned to support the next phase of growth at the London-based VFX firm, including further international expansion, ongoing product diversification and broadening the application scope for VFX technologies.

The founders and management will continue to retain a “significant minority stake” in The Foundry while Falcon Investment Advisors has converted its current ownership in into mezzanine notes in support of the acquisition.

Chief executive of The Foundry, Dr Bill Collis, said: “Carlyle’s financial strength, extensive network, and track record in the management of software companies are great assets to our business.

“We look forward to partnering with Carlyle and seeking opportunities in current and new markets as we continue to progress and innovate.”

Earlier this month, The Foundry launched Storm, its workflow software for Red cameras.