Ardian arranges unitranche financing for Astorg's buyout of Barkene
Ardian has arranged a unitranche facility to support Astorg's leveraged buyout of Barkene, a French provider of mission-critical technical services.
The financing sits alongside a significant reinvestment from Barkene’s management team, and includes a sizeable committed line to fund the group’s active bolt-on strategy.
Ardian has targeted this market segment for more than two decades. Founded in 2018, Barkene has grown into a leading multi-specialist platform in France, operating across electronic security, fire safety, automatic doors, and remote monitoring.
With close to 800 employees across 39 branches, the business pairs technical expertise with national coverage, serving a diversified customer base in a resilient market underpinned by regulatory requirements, compliance standards, and recurring service demand.
Jean-David Ponsin, Co-Head of Private Credit France at Ardian, tied the financing to the platform’s growth record. “We are delighted to support Astorg and Barkene’s management team, led by CEO Richard Weihart, in this new phase of the company’s development,” he said, adding that Barkene had “established a leading platform with a strong track record of growth and successful integration” and pointing to its continued expansion and long-term ambitions.
Ardian’s private credit business is among Europe’s most established, applying a multi-local approach to partner with private equity sponsors and management teams, and the firm framed the Barkene facility as part of a period of strong activity for the team.