Deafening silence surrounds Satago acquisition

Key details missing on Satago acquisition, Arrowgrass pulling strings.

A few weeks ago we learnt that invoice finance and cash-flow management platform Satago had been acquired by Oxygen Finance, an early payment network. The details of the deal were not disclosed, but clues as to what kind of information was withheld have now emerged. 

Arrowgrass Capital, an alternative asset manager, appears to be attempting to bring both firms back from the brink.

An anonymous source suggested to AltFi that both Oxygen and Satago were purchased for a nominal amount. But a second source then suggested that the acquisition process was at least competitive, if not especially lucrative for existing investors.

Arrowgrass, Oxygen and Satago have each declined to comment. ESF Capital, which invested £4.6m in Satago in June of 2016 (including £1.6m in equity), also opted not to comment. 

Arrowgrass has been active in this space for a while. The firm agreed to provide funding to e-invoicing network Basware to help launch Basware Advance in November 2015. It has also invested £15m of equity capital in Zopa in January 2014.

Given its work with Basware, which processes hundreds of millions of invoices a year, one wonders what Arrowgrass has planned for Oxygen and Satago. It would appear that the firm has its heart set on building some kind of all-in-one solution for cash-flow management.

But with such scant information as we have, it’s really anyone’s guess.