FPE completes the sale of its investment in leading employee benefits platform Zest to Epassi Group

The sale marks a highly successful fifth exit from the firm’s second fund, achieving an outstanding return on investment

LONDON, 4th June 2025 – FPE, the specialist software & data focused lower mid-market investor, is pleased to announce the successful sale of Zest, the award-winning employee benefits software platform. Zest has been acquired by Epassi Group, a leading pan-European employee benefits technology provider backed by Warburg Pincus and TA Associates. The terms of the transaction are not disclosed.

With a well-established track record of successful investments in Human Capital Management software platforms such as Kallidus and Questionmark, FPE invested in Zest in July 2021, supporting the management team to complete a buyout from a large UK plc. Since then, FPE has partnered closely with the business to deliver a substantial transformation. This has included significant investment in the technology platform and go-to-market capabilities, the addition of senior leadership talent, the launch of new product features, a rebrand, and a successful pivot from channel-led to direct sales.

Over FPE’s investment period, annual recurring revenue has more than doubled organically, with current year revenue growth of 24% being achieved alongside strong profitability. The business has secured a number of enterprise contracts with leading blue-chip customers and now serves over 500 organisations, including Hargreaves Lansdown, Taylor Wimpey and Yahoo, reaching more than 300,000 employees.

Zest’s growth and innovation have been widely recognised, winning multiple awards including Best Employee Benefits Technology (Corporate Adviser Awards 2024), Workplace Tech of the Year (National Technology Awards 2024), and a place among the Top 25 Work Tech Vendors (Inspiring Workplaces 2024). The company was recently named one of the Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2025.

Matt Russell, CEO of Zest, commented, “The period since FPE’s investment has been truly transformational for Zest. We’ve experienced significant growth and made substantial progress across our product, team, and go-to-market approach. FPE has been a highly engaged and supportive partner throughout – playing a key role in helping us reach this stage. I’m now excited to begin the next chapter with Epassi and continue building on this momentum.”

Dan Walker, Partner at FPE, commented, “This marks another strong outcome for Fund II, contributing to an average exit multiple well above 3.0x MoC. It’s been a real privilege to partner with Matt and the team as they’ve evolved the business across product, leadership, and go-to-market. Their ambition and execution have been exceptional, and we’re proud to have supported them on this journey. We wish them every success as they take the business forward with Epassi.

FPE’s team was led by Dan Walker, Connor Trendell, and Harry Gill. FPE was advised by Cavendish (Corporate Finance) and Stephenson Harwood (Legal). 

Notes to Editors:

FPE

FPE Capital LLP (‘FPE’) is a specialist private equity investor focused on the software, data and services sectors. It invests in lower mid-market UK and Ireland headquartered software,data and services companies with advantaged business models that offer significant growth potential in large markets that are undergoing structural change. FPE is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. www.fpecapital.com

Zest

Zest is a leading flexible benefits platform helping People teams build better workplaces. Our award-winning technology enables employees to personalise their benefits, understand their total reward, access policies, enjoy discounts, recognise colleagues, and receive targeted communications — all in one intuitive solution. With Zest’s codeless benefit builder and smart automation, People teams reduce setup time, eliminate manual admin, and streamline life events, benefit windows, reporting, and engagement. Accessible via web and mobile, the platform delivers a seamless, self-service experience. www.zestbenefits.com

Epassi

Founded in 2007, Epassi is a leading provider of employee benefits technology operating across Finland, Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, the UK and Ireland. Epassi’s innovative, mobile and digital first platform serves around 43,000 employers and their more than 22 million employees, partnering with more than 97,000 service providers across its benefits ecosystem.

Epassi has been recognized by the Financial Times as one of the fastest growing companies in Europe in 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025. Epassi was ranked 32nd on “Europe’s Long-term Growth Champions 2025” list. Epassi – Boosting everyday well-being. www.epassi.com