Livingstone advises on successive refinancings for BPO industry leader Afni

Livingstone’s Debt Advisory team is pleased to announce the refinancing of Afni, Inc. by Regions Bank.

Afni is a business process outsourcing (“BPO”) leader with operations centers across the U.S. and the Philippines.  The Company specializes in providing full customer lifecycle solutions for clients primarily in the Communications and Insurance industries. Afni’s solutions are delivered through multiple customer channels including inbound voice, web chat, social media and back office processing. Since 1990, Afni has grown from 50 employees in Bloomington, IL to over 5,000 based in seven office locations around the world.

This is Livingstone’s second debt advisory transaction with Afni, having previously secured financing for the Company from Newstar Financial in 2014. Afni’s Chief Financial Officer Steve Czirjak commented on this recent transaction, noting: “Livingstone has again secured another outstanding result for Afni and we look forward to working with our new commercial banking partner Regions Bank to execute on our growth plans.”

Afni marks Livingstone’s seventh debt advisory transaction this year and comes on the heels of successful debt raises for a variety of family-owned and sponsor-backed companies. “We are always pleased to work with repeat clients and assist them throughout the lifecycle of their businesses.  Being both an M&A and Debt Advisory firm, our professionals can assist companies not only with the appropriate capital structure or refinancing but also with larger strategic initiatives, acquisitions, and the ultimate exit” commented Livingstone Partner Tom Lesch.

The BPO sector is one particularly well known to Livingstone, with the recent closings of cross-border transactions including the sale of Grass Roots Group to Blackhawk Network Holdings and the sale of CSL to Iconiq Capital.

“We have continued to see a lot of activity in the CRM industry, which we believe will drive increased financing and M&A opportunities. This transaction substantiates the liquidity in the market for strong middle-market companies in the call center industry,” commented Brennan Libbey, Livingstone Partner and Business Services team leader.