Düsseldorf, 2 February 2024 – Main Capital Partners announces the majority investment in cisbox, a leading German provider of cloud- and AI-based Procure-to-Pay (P2P) software. Acting as a strategic partner, Main is committed to supporting cisbox in its next growth phase through both organic and inorganic strategic initiatives. This acquisition already marks Main’s second platform investment in the DACH-region in 2024 and showcases Main’s dedication to fostering growth and innovation in the B2B software industry.

Established in 2005 and headquartered in Solingen, Germany, cisbox is a pioneer in the field of P2P software in Germany. With over 140 employees, cisbox offers its customers vertical agnostic cloud- and AI-based software solutions for the optimization of P2P processes. In addition to its headquarter in Solingen, cisbox has two operating sites in Ho-Chi-Minh-City, Vietnam, for software development support and data labeling services. The company has a strong market position in the DACH-region, particularly in services, healthcare, and hospitality industries, serves over 1,000 customers of all sizes, and is certified Peppol Access Service Provider. The company’s comprehensive software and services offering covers the entire Accounts Payables workflow. Key features range from invoice receipt over fully outsourced data validation and approval processes to payment processing. Over recent years, the company has also expanded its software suite towards purchase order and complementary analytics functionalities. Over the last decade, cisbox has built a strong and extensive network of partners who in turn cater its customers in various industries via cisbox’s white label platform.

The two founders Stephan Kern and Sebastian Mehrle will remain onboard, significantly reinvested in the company and will shape the next growth phase together with Main. Looking forward, Main will actively support cisbox in maintaining its strong growth momentum by further internationalizing the business and extending the value proposition for its customers. Besides organic growth initiatives, strategic add-on acquisitions will be an important pillar of the growth strategy to complement the innovative product and services portfolio, further broadening the geographical footprint as well as consolidating the market position.

Stephan Kern, Founder and Managing Director at cisbox, comments: “We are excited to partner with Main as we continue to grow our business. Their expertise in the B2B cloud technology sector and their track record of success make them an ideal partner for cisbox. This partnership will provide us access to new markets, partners and customers. With Main’s experience we should be able to integrate new functionalities and technologies into the cisbox solution to offer our existing customers new stunning features. In this case: 1+1 will be 3.”

Sebastian Mehrle, Founder and Managing Director at cisbox, adds: “Our customers and partners rely on our ability to constantly innovate and offer customer-centric and secure solutions to digitize and optimize their operations, and above all to provide real-time data and forecasts for better decisions. The nationally adopted regulatory requirements derived from the EU directive on electronic invoicing, skilled labor shortage, and the need for cash flow forecasting in volatile markets, are just some of the reasons why we are now witnessing such great momentum and demand for digital transformation in the market. We are convinced our strategic partnership with Main will further accelerate this transition, enabling us to expand our product offerings and presence in new verticals, both nationally and internationally, and to widen our global partner ecosystem. It is thus the right decision for our customers, partners, and for us. And for our existing and additional employees, who collaborate with a diverse and multi-cultural team across – currently – two countries, and are players in our exciting journey toward global success.”

Dorian Berndt, Investment Director at Main Capital Partners, concludes: “Having known cisbox and the team for years, we are very pleased about the partnership with cisbox and excited about its growth momentum and prospects. cisbox is clearly a winner in the P2P software market, has seen its recurring revenues growing at a CAGR north of 20% and will strongly benefit from regulatory tailwinds, such as e-Invoicing and Peppol. We are confident that our focused organic growth initiatives coupled with a selective buy-and-build strategy will result in an improved value proposition towards existing and new customers”