Bowmark Capital has acquired a majority shareholding in WSD, a leading provider of document and workflow automation software solutions to the global structured products industry.
The global structured products market has a size of approximately US$3 trillion and is growing at over 10% per annum. The complexity of structured products requires a high volume of associated legal and regulatory documents which have historically been drafted manually. Founded in 2009 by chief executive officer Mathias Strasser, WSD offers software solutions that automate the creation and management of these documents thereby reducing cost, increasing efficiency and improving the accuracy of the data provided to its clients, which include leading global investment banks.
WSD has achieved revenue growth of over 15% per annum since 2019. Bowmark’s investment will help accelerate delivery of the company’s product development roadmap and extend WSD’s infrastructure across North America, Europe and Asia. Bowmark has a strong track record of supporting businesses that provide specialist technology solutions to the financial services industry including Pirum Systems, a provider of post-trade automation technology, and Data Explorers, a specialist financial data provider.
As part of the transaction, Peter Little will join WSD’s board as non-executive chairman, bringing extensive experience of growing financial services software companies.
Mathias Strasser commented: “Bowmark’s investment marks an important milestone in the development of WSD and is a testament to the strength of our customer proposition. We have found a partner who truly understands our business and shares our vision of offering banks a straight-through automation solution for structured products and OTC derivatives. Their previous experience in the sector will be invaluable as we move to the next stage of our development.”
Tom Shelford, a partner at Bowmark, said: “WSD’s deep understanding of the structured products industry underpins its leading suite of software solutions. There is now a considerable opportunity for further growth as the company meets increasing market demand by further developing its platform and expanding into adjacent markets.”
Peter Little commented: “Mathias and his team have built WSD into the leading automation provider in structured products with an impressive track record of product and service innovation. I look forward to working with them to build on their considerable achievements to date.”
For further information, please contact mstrasser@wallstreetdocs.com or on +44 (0) 7860 463193.
Bowmark Capital is a leading private equity firm that invests in UK services and technology companies. Established in 1997, we manage and advise funds of over £1.5 billion and have made more than 50 investments. With our strategic support and capital, we work in partnership with management teams to accelerate growth and build exceptional businesses. Find out more at www.bowmark.com and LinkedIn. Bowmark Capital LLP is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
WSD is a leading provider of SaaS-based technology solutions for manufacturers of structured products and OTC derivatives, covering all aspects of the process from pre-trade workflows to order management, document production, data dissemination to exchanges, data vendors and the buy-side, as well as lifecycle management. WSD also operates RegXchange, an industry utility connecting the sell-side and buy-side, and Transparitrade, a white-labelled client-facing.
