Fullsteam LLC ("Fullsteam"), a leading provider of integrated business management software and payments to customers across the Main Street economy, today announced that it has received significant new investment from founding sponsor Aquiline Capital Partners LLC ("Aquiline") and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority ("ADIA"), along with a consortium of other investors. Aquiline will remain as the lead investor in the company and ADIA will become a significant minority investor. This infusion of capital will enable Fullsteam to enter its next phase of expansion, building upon its rapid organic growth and an impressive portfolio of seventy acquisitions to date.
Established in 2018 by CEO Michael Lawler and Aquiline, Fullsteam has been purpose-built and scaled to meaningfully transform the small to mid-sized merchant experience across multiple sectors, including specialty retail, field services, automotive, leisure, property management, association management, and other specialized markets. At the heart of its business model lies the integration of merchant payment processing and core vertical software. By seamlessly integrating payment processing products with comprehensive resources to accelerate software growth in each of its vertical solutions, Fullsteam allows its resident software entrepreneurs to continuously enhance the experience for its current base of approximately 50,000 customers.
Hamad Shahwan Aldhaheri, Executive Director of the Private Equities Department at ADIA, commented, "Fullsteam is well positioned to continue its strong growth trajectory by meeting the digitalized payments and software needs of its customers and pursuing further acquisition opportunities. We are delighted to partner with Aquiline and Fullsteam to support the business as it embarks on its next phase of growth."
Joe Pappalardo, Partner at Aquiline, said, "When we established Fullsteam with Mike and Greg Colella, our M&A leader, our goal was to address and accelerate two significant trends in vertical software: the adoption of business management across the small business economy and the convergence of this core software with merchant payment processing. Today, Fullsteam is emerging as a leading buyer and supporter of vertical software companies driving these two trends in North America. We are delighted to expand our existing relationship with ADIA through this transaction and we look forward to continuing our collaboration with Fullsteam to enhance the day-to-day experiences of its growing customer base."
Michael Lawler, CEO of Fullsteam, said: "This is an incredibly exciting day for Fullsteam and our entire team as we expand our strategy to transform the payments and software landscape across a wide range of industries. Leveraging our extensive expertise in integrated payments, growth-focused resources, and entrepreneur-centric culture, Fullsteam has a proven track record of helping business founders accelerate their companies' growth while providing exceptional customer service. With the continued support of Aquiline and ADIA, we eagerly anticipate expanding our family of vertical payments and software providers, serving the countless small and mid-sized businesses that form the backbone of our economy."
Goldman Sachs served as lead financial advisor and Raymond James served as financial advisor to Fullsteam. Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP served as legal advisor for Aquiline and Fullsteam.
About Fullsteam Holdings LLC
Fullsteam is a leading payments and software company headquartered in Auburn, Alabama. Fullsteam provides streamlined payments infrastructure and enhanced operational support to better serve customers. Fullsteam is actively seeking further acquisitions across multiple software verticals.
About Aquiline Capital Partners LLC
Aquiline Capital Partners LLC is a private investment firm based in New York and London investing in companies across financial services and technology, healthcare and business services. The firm has $9.9 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2023.
About the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority
Established in 1976, the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority ("ADIA") is a globally-diversified investment institution that prudently invests funds on behalf of the Government of Abu Dhabi through a strategy focused on long-term value creation.