Das 2009 gegründete Unternehmen mit Hauptsitz in Lausanne beschäftigt rund 90 Mitarbeitende und entwickelt und produziert eine eigene Produktlinie von Hochleistungs-Starrflüglerdrohnen der Marke eBee für den professionellen Einsatz. senseFly erwirtschaftete im Jahr 2020 einen Jahresumsatz von rund USD 12,5 Millionen.
Team von Bär & Karrer
Bär & Karrer war neben Carlton Fields als Schweizer Rechtsberater von AgEagle bei dieser Transaktion tätig. Zum Team gehörten Martin Anderson und Arnaud Philippe (beide M&A), Laura Widmer, Nadia Smahi und Laura Rubeli (alle Arbeitsrecht), Christoph Suter und Alice Johnson (beide Steuerrecht), Tobias Rebmann (Kartellrecht) sowie Jonas Bornhauser (IP).
Information von senseFly über die Transaktion
Das Unternehmen senseFly informierte wie folgt über die Transaktion:
AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc. (NYSE American: UAVS) (“AgEagle” or the “Company”), an industry-leading provider of drones, sensors and software, and Parrot (Euronext Paris: PARRO), a leading European drone group, today jointly announced that they have signed a definitive agreement under which AgEagle shall acquire senseFly, a Parrot Group wholly-owned subsidiary, in a cash and stock transaction valued at US$23 million.
Founded in 2009, senseFly develops and produces a proprietary line of eBee-branded, high performance, fixed wing drones for professional use. Safe, ultra-light and easy to use, these autonomous drones are utilized by thousands of customers around the world in agriculture, government, engineering and construction, among other industry verticals, to collect actionable aerial data intelligence. Headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland, senseFly employs 90 people, generating total annual revenues of approximately US$12.5 million in 2020.
Brandon Torres Declet, Chief Executive Officer of AgEagle, stated, “Recognized as the producer of the world’s most widely used fixed wing drones, senseFly is an ideal strategic fit for AgEagle; and is expected to accelerate our core growth strategy centered on delivering proprietary, full stack drone solutions to the global agriculture, construction, energy, government sectors, and in the future, package delivery. In addition, senseFly brings AgEagle solid engineering talent focused on advanced research and development, a well-established global reseller network and a strong portfolio of intellectual property.”
Parrot founder and Chief Executive Officer, Henri Seydoux, commented, “We trust that senseFly and the eBee line of fixed wing drones will continue to deliver tangible value, benefits and efficiencies to AgEagle’s customers and business partners well into the future. Moving forward, Parrot will focus its expertise and resources on the growth of its professional quadcopter drone equipment and drone data analysis software activities. The transaction will provide additional cash and lower operational expends to drive Parrot’s growth and industry standing. With the expended capabilities of the ANAFI line of professional drones and of the Pix4D software suites, Parrot will continue to address its core market segments: 3D Mapping, Surveying and Inspection, Agriculture, and Defense and Security.”
“senseFly has reached a very exciting and pivotal point in its history and is well positioned to build upon its leading position in the fixed wing drone market and accelerate its promising growth trajectory through this strategic combination with AgEagle,” noted Gilles Labossiere, senseFly’s Chief Executive Officer. “The impressive mix of solutions for customers and proven industry experience of both companies is expected to make for a solid foundation capable of propelling the companies forward and fueling exponential growth.”
In tandem with the closing of the acquisition expected shortly, Labossiere will resign as Chief Executive Officer of senseFly. Michael O’Sullivan, who previously served as the Company’s Head of Global Marketing, will be appointed as Managing Director of the new AgEagle subsidiary. All other senseFly employees will retain their current responsibilities.
Concluding, Brandon Torres Declet added, “We are very pleased to welcome senseFly to the fast-growing AgEagle family and look forward to integrating its many strengths with the power and performance of AgEagle’s proprietary sensor and software solutions to effectively meet the needs of customers globally. We would also like to extend our deepest thanks to Gilles for his leadership at senseFly and the instrumental role he played in the acquisition process. This is an exciting inflection point for the AgEagle and senseFly teams.”
