PARIS – Smart AdServer, direct and programmatic advertising platform, plans to partner with Cathay Capital Private Equity. The investment fund, active across the United States, Europe and Asia, is an expert in supporting fast-growing SMEs with their cross-border growth strategies. Cathay Capital has made a put option to the internet portal aufeminin for the acquisition of its subsidiary Smart AdServer. Smart AdServer wishes to strongly accelerate its development and to become a leading advertising platform for premium brands and publishers.
A historical player established on a fast-growing market
Since 2001, Smart AdServer has developed and marketed an integrated advertising management platform, with a strong position in Europe and significant market share in North and South America. Historically positioned on ad serving, with a recognized leadership on mobile advertising, the company launched its Smart RTB+ and Smart Video solutions in 2013. These two strategic sources of growth are both experiencing an exponential development. In 2014, the company also entered the North American market by opening an office in New York.
Smart AdServer counts a hundred employees across 10 countries and generated a turnover of 14 million Euros (16 million dollars) in 2014. Every month, the company delivers more than 140 billion advertising impressions (20 billion for mobiles), for more than 450 clients (publishers, marketers and agencies), 300 of which are international leading brands. Among Smart AdServer’s clients are Hi Media, Axel Springer, Le Figaro, Antevenio, Clarin, Le Monde, IQ Digital, Netbook, L’Equipe, aufeminin, etc.
Cyrille Geffray, Managing Director of Smart AdServer, notes: “Smart AdServer already has a great track record. Many of our achievements are also to be sharedwith aufeminin and Axel Springer, who are strategic partners for us and actively supported us over the years. As a token of their trust, they wouldremain strategic clients for the company in the years ahead.”
Smart AdServer’s ambition: to become a leading platform for premium advertising
Amongst the four historical global ad servers, Smart AdServer would become the only independent player and would position itself to become the alternative advertising platform for leading media companies.
Cyrille Geffray, Managing Director of Smart AdServer, adds: “Through this project of the management team to establish Smart AdServer as an independent player, the company would gain  a new momentum. Our main  goal has always been to equip  our clients with the best platform  in order to help them to maintain control over their development and to keep their independence.  We  would continue to support them, without any risks linked to conflict of interest, counterparties  or  selling-out, but with more resources. Our ambition is to offer the best integrated platform for the optimization of direct and programmatic sales  and for any kind of  digital content (Web, Mobile and Video).  We take an aggressive approach towards innovation and independence, as our clients have strong expectations in both areas.
Smart AdServer would leverage a dual dynamic: on one side, its development in the United States and, on the other, the growth of the programmatic advertising marketplace. In total, the market potential of the company will rise from 60 million dollars today to 3 billion dollars by 2017*.
With the active support of Cathay Capital, the Company would undertake significant innovation investments, so as to strengthen its leadership position on its historical activities while continuing to establish strong positions on emerging business areas, mainly in programmatic and video.
Smart AdServer could also accelerate its international business development, particularly in the United States, where it would leverage its initial success on the market by strengthening its New York office and by opening an office on the West coast so as to increase its US market footprint.
According to Fabien Wesse, Partner at Cathay Capital: “By working alongside Smart AdServer‘s  teams and management, we plan  to help the company undertake a new step in its international development, including its ongoing activities in the  United States, as well as in other regions such as South America and Europe, or in Asia in the coming years. Smart AdServer would ramp  up its investments and recruit new talents, all of which would directly benefit all of the company‘s clients.“
*Â (source : IDC Global RTB and Display Spending White Paper, Sept 2013)
About Smart AdServer
Founded in 2001, Smart AdServer provides tech solutions for online advertising. Smart AdServer’s intelligent and interconnected platform makes it possible to manage both direct and programmatic advertising campaigns across all digital media: online, mobile apps or video content. Key player in the ad tech market, Smart AdServer has more than 100 employees in 10 offices worldwide. The company has more than 450 customers around the world and is the privileged partner of premium media companies who emphasise their strategic autonomy, including Hi Media, Axel Springer, Le Figaro, Antevenio, Clarin, Le Monde, IQ Digital, Netbook, L’Equipe, etc
About Cathay Capital PE
Cathay Capital Private Equity, founded by Mingpo Cai and Edouard Moinet in Paris in 2006, is the leading global middle-market, private equity firm created by Entrepreneurs for Entrepreneurs. As an expert in creating value through cross-border investments in China, Europe and North America, Cathay Capital is fully dedicated to helping its portfolio company management teams focus on growth and succeed beyond their original borders.
Cathay’s unique platform on three continents – and offices currently located in Shanghai, Beijing, New York and Paris – as well as its multicultural team including thirty investment professionals, enables the firm to locally accelerate cross-border growth strategies through its broad local ecosystems.
As of December 31, 2014, Cathay Capital had invested in 36 companies and had over 900 million euros under management.
SOURCE Smart AdServer
