News

CITIC Capital has acquired UCO from Qingdao KingKing Applied Chemistry Co. No financial terms were disclosed. UCO is a digital marketing and e-commerce service provider focusing on the beauty and personal care sector in China.

PRESS RELEASE

([Hong Kong, 29 April 2019) Private equity arm of CITIC Capital Holdings Limited (“CITIC Capital”) is pleased to announce that it has completed the acquisition of Hangzhou UCO Cosmetics, Ltd., ( “UCO” or “the Company”) from Qingdao KingKing Applied Chemistry Co., Ltd (SZ:002094). This carve-out was completed in partnership with the existing UCO management team, who will continue to lead the Company in its next phase of growth. This is the seventh carve-out deals CITIC Capital has completed within two years (Note 1). Established in 2010, UCO is a leading digital marketing and e-commerce service provider focusing on the beauty and personal care sector in China. Over the years, UCO has become an indispensable business partner for global and local brands, providing innovative, end-to- end digital solutions and best-in-class e-commerce services that enable the brands to build and grow their business online.

Hanxi ZHAO, Senior Managing Director of CITIC Capital, says: “The beauty sector is one of the fastest growing consumer sectors with e-commerce being the growth engine for many of the global and local beauty brands in the China market. UCO is known for its deep understanding of digital and e-commerce, innovative and technology-enabled solutions, and dedication in quality service. We are very excited to become the partner of Arthur and his talented and passionate management team to continue to build UCO as an instrumental player in the beauty eco-system.”

Arthur CHANG, founder and CEO of UCO, says: “UCO has always strived to be the ultimate, long-term business partner for global beauty brands in China. The management team is committed to continuing to innovate, provide best-in-class services and solutions for our customers, and create pleasant shopping experience for our consumers. With the support from CITIC Capital, we are confident that we will take UCO to the next level together.” Haiwen & Partners served as legal counsel to CITIC Capital. Bank of China, acting as Mandated Lead Arranger, and China Merchants Bank as Joint Lead Arranger, provided acquisition financing to CITIC Capital and UCO.

Note 1: Recently completed carve-out deals include sauce maker Amoy Food, McDonald’s business in Mainland China and Hong Kong, sexual wellness company LifeStyles, Wall Street English, financial information database operator Global Marketing Intelligence Division, leading supply chain pooling solution provider China Merchants Loscam.

About CITIC Capital Holdings Limited
Founded in 2002, CITIC Capital is an alternative investment management and advisory company. The firm manages over USD25 billion of capital across 100 funds and investment products through its multi-asset class platform covering private equity, real estate, structured investment & finance, and asset management. CITIC Capital has over 160 portfolio companies that span 11 sectors and employ over 850,000 people around the world. CITIC Capital’s private equity arm, CITIC Capital Partners, focused on control buyout opportunities globally, has completed over 60 investments in the past years in China, Japan, U.S. and Europe. The private equity arm currently manages USD7.3 billion of committed capital. For more information, please visit www.citiccapital.com.