Flexible, long-term growth investments
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About Gryphion
Formed in 2018, Gryphion is a family investment platform investing in multiple asset classes, predominantly in Western Europe.
Defined by flexibility and not by exit-pressures, Gryphion primarily makes direct investments or large-scale co-investments in businesses with high growth potential, providing management teams, founders and entrepreneurs with long-term capital, industry-leading private equity experience and operational expertise. Gryphion also makes impact investments, invests in early-stage real estate development, provides hybrid debt structures and holds an extensive portfolio of liquid assets.
Operating out of Amsterdam, with offices in London and Antwerp, Gryphion invests capital on behalf of Rob Thielen, Founder and Chairman of Waterland Private Equity Investments, one of the world’s best performing private equity groups, and other select high net worth individuals and family offices.
Our Team
Robert Thielen
Founder and Chairman
Robert Thielen is the Founder and Chairman of Gryphion, which he founded in 2018, and also serves as Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Waterland Private Equity Investments. After founding Waterland in 1999, Rob developed the firm into one of the best performing private equity groups in the world, currently active in eight core countries, with acquisitions in over 20 countries across four continents. Waterland has invested over €15 billion in over 400 companies across Waterland’s four target sectors.
Hans Oerlemans
Managing Director, Investments
Hans Oerlemans is a Managing Director at Gryphion and is responsible for the firm’s investment strategy. Hans was previously a Partner at Egeria, a Netherlands-based private equity firm and prior to that, spent over 11 years at Waterland Private Equity Investments, where he was Associate Principal and was responsible for multiple investments, including Intertrust and JVH Gaming. In addition, Hans holds extensive operational expertise, having previously worked at McKinsey & Company, Hoogovens (now Tata Steel) and Value Enhancement Partners.
Hans holds a M.Sc. in Aeronautical Engineering from Delft University and an M.B.A., with distinction, from INSEAD in Fontainebleau.
Ruth Baert
Chief Financial Officer
Ruth is Chief Financial Officer at Gryphion. Ruth was previously Legal Counsel of Waterland Private Equity Investments, working directly with Rob Thielen. Prior to joining Waterland in 2012, Ruth worked at VGD, where she held several senior positions across a number of different departments, including audit and Truncus, the firm’s family office arm.
Ruth holds a Master’s degree in Law from the Catholic University of Leuven, after which she also obtained a secondary degree in additional studies, administration and business management from the Catholic University of Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.
Christel Mooren
Business Administrator
Christel is an Accountant at Gryphion. Prior to joining the firm, Christel spent over five years at Waterland Private Equity Investments as a Business Administrator providing financial support to the firm. Previously, Christel worked for several years as head of Terminal Customer Service at Euroports, one of the largest port operators in Europe, with concessions in more than 20 European locations.
Christel holds a Master’s degree in Commercial and Consular Sciences from VLEKHO.
Strategy
Gryphion is unconstrained by narrowly-defined investment strategies and takes a long-term approach to its investments, deploying capital flexibly in support of growth.
Gryphion identifies proprietary investment opportunities in businesses with high-growth potential and exceptional management teams and supports their growth, providing management teams, founders and entrepreneurs with truly long-term capital, industry-leading private equity experience and operational expertise.
As well as making direct investments, Gryphion also invests in early-stage real estate, provides hybrid debt structures and holds an extensive portfolio of liquid assets. Gryphion focuses on transactions between €20m and €200m enterprise value or more.
Investments
Gryphion is developing its private equity and real estate portfolio. It is currently engaged with redevelopment projects in Cala del Forte, Italy, a state-of-the-art marina development by Monaco Ports.
Gryphion has recently acquired an interest in Emsere, a global player in financial & logistical solutions for the medical equipment industry. Emsere is its core business activity, a one-stop resource providing medical equipment rental services for clinical trials. Through their services Emsere helps customers decrease their total cost of ownership of equipment and takes care of all logistical activities involved providing a full-service solution.
For further information on Emsere, please visit their website.
Gryphion has invested in CineSite, one of the world’s most highly respected independent digital entertainment studios, producing award-winning animation and visual effects for film, broadcast and streaming media platforms. Alongside global VFX services, its feature animation business works with IP creators and filmmakers to create high-end animated features that resonate with a global audience.
For further information about CineSite, please visit their website
Gryphion also invested in Skeye BV, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) provider delivering high-end aerial imagery services to clients in the Netherlands, which was acquired in November 2018 by Terra Drone, Japan’s largest UAV firm. Other holdings include Lafrontiere, a Paris-based provider of talent to the fashion industry and a hybrid financing structure provided to a Belgian leisure company.
Gryphion invested in MainPlus, a fast-growing repair in-kind claim management company related to housing- and content damage. MainPlus organizes, with the support of its own developed software MainFlow, the repair in-kind claim management process for insurance companies and authorized agents. The damage restoration is performed sustainable and independent through a nation-wide network of repair partners.
For further information on MainPlus, please visit their website.
CONTACT US
T. +31 20 2442 996
Gryphion, Barbara Strozzilaan 101, 1083 HN, Amsterdam, The Netherlands