MAITLAND, Fla. -- March 21, 2005 -- FDN Communications, a leading provider of telecommunications services in the Southeast, and H.I.G. Capital, the largest private equity firm in the Southeast, has jointly acquired Supra Telecom, a Miami-based telephone company that serves over 250,000 residential customers in South Florida. FDN and HIG will each own 50 percent of Supra. Supra emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection today.
Supra will use FDN's proprietary network and systems to provide an expanded portfolio of voice and data products, including local, long distance, and high speed Internet options, such as DSL, to the residential market. FDN owns and operates a fiber-optic-linked network, powered by state-of-the-art Nortel Class 5 switches.
"This investment is a great fit with our strategy to deepen our penetration in our core markets and will rapidly accelerate our revenue growth," says Mike Gallagher, FDN's founder and chief executive officer. "Combining FDN's network and operating strengths with Supra's leadership position in the residential market will ensure residential customers continue to have an alternative to the high priced monopolies."
Already a leading provider in the business sector with annual revenues exceeding $150 million, FDN will use this transaction to build its dominant position in the Florida marketplace. Gallagher said: "The deal will mean the expansion of FDN's work force in Central and South Florida," estimating that more than 100 new positions will be created in the next 6 months.
"We have always felt that operating our own network and systems allow us to bring innovative products and services to the marketplace and provide superior customer service," Gallagher said. "We know the Supra customers will recognize and appreciate an improved level of support."
About FDN Communications
Headquartered in Maitland, Florida, FDN Communications has been a leading growth company over the last six years, providing business class communication services to over 100 markets in Florida and Georgia. Today FDN serves more than 70,000 business locations with more than 250,000 business telephone and Internet lines. Presently employing about 600 people, FDN has become a major economic force in Florida and Georgia. FDN offers a complete line of communications services, including local and long distance voice, High-Speed Internet access, Virtual Private Networking (VPN), Web Hosting and Integrated voice and data solutions to businesses. FDN also is the parent company of Broadline Communications, which offers VoIP telephone service to residential customers.
About Supra Telecom
Supra Telecom, based in Miramar, is the 2nd largest telecommunications provider in the tri-county area with over 250,000 customers and annual revenues exceeding $150,000,000. Supra provides local, domestic and international long distance, voicemail, and internet service to its business and residential customers. Supra is one of the few competitive local exchange carriers to deploy its own carrier class network switches to serve its customers. Supra provides nearly half of all competitive access lines in the state of Florida and is estimated to be the largest residential competitor to BellSouth in Florida. Supra clearly plays a pivotal role in providing real competition in telecommunications services in Florida.
About H.I.G. Capital
H.I.G. Capital is a leading private equity and venture capital investment firm with more than $1.5 billion of equity capital under management. Based in Miami, Florida, and with offices in Atlanta, Boston, and San Francisco, H.I.G. Capital specializes in providing capital to small and medium-sized companies with attractive growth potential. H.I.G. Capital invests in management-led buyouts and recapitalizations of well-established, profitable, and well-managed manufacturing or service businesses, and in promising early stage technology companies. Since its founding, H.I.G. Capital has made more than fifty highly successful investments, acquiring companies with combined revenues in excess of $4.0 billion.
