Services

London, Luxembourg 04 MARCH 2026 PANDOO, Highvern and Permian (the “Group”) are pleased to announce the signing of binding agreements to combine the businesses, with the continued backing from Jacobs Capital. This partnership represents a significant milestone in the Group’s strategy to expand into key strategic markets and further consolidates its position as a leading international provider of fund services and private capital solutions, following Jacobs Capital’s investment to combine Highvern and Permian in 2025. PANDOO’s senior management will reinvest alongside Jacobs Capital and existing Highvern and Permian shareholders. Founded in 2009 by Charles Meyer, PANDOO is a leading independent Luxembourg-based provider of administration and management services for investment vehicles, offering a fully integrated, end-to-end platform for alternative investment structures. It brings proven Luxembourg expertise, an established and growing client base, and a reputation for high-quality client service. The newly combined Group will operate in nine jurisdictions with over 400 employees. This provides clients with greater choice and immediate access to Luxembourg, Europe’s leading alternative investment fund market, complementing the Group’s existing footprint including the Cayman Islands, Guernsey, Ireland, Jersey, Norway, South Africa, Sweden and the UK, and supporting accelerated organic growth. Clients will also have access to broader asset class expertise, including PANDOO’s experience in high-growth sectors such as real estate, real asset structures and private debt, alongside private equity and venture capital. Together, the businesses share a strong client-centric approach and a commitment to service quality, underpinned by ongoing investment in people and technology. The combined Group increases scale and international reach, bringing together highly skilled and specialist teams with closely aligned cultures and shared values. This positions the Group to better address increasingly complex client needs, deliver consistent service excellence, and support long-term sustainable growth. Subject to regulatory approvals, the transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2026. Martine Grün, John Wantz, Sven Rein, Partners at PANDOO, said: "We are excited to join forces with Highvern and Permian. Jacobs Capital is the right partner for us – they understand our culture, invest for the long term and empower entrepreneurial teams. Together, we share a strong focus on client service, agility and ownership, which will enable seamless collaboration from day one. Our Luxembourg expertise will thrive within this broader international platform. We thank our dedicated team and valued clients for their trust and support as we embark on this exciting journey together." Caroline Connellan, Group CEO at Highvern & Permian, said: “We are delighted to welcome PANDOO to the Group. Our partnership brings together highly skilled people and complementary businesses with closely aligned cultures and shared values. As a Group, we have an exciting opportunity to offer clients greater choice across asset classes and jurisdictions, while continuing to deliver the service standards they expect. We are very much looking forward to working with the PANDOO team.” Johan Pettersson, Head of Business Services at Jacobs Capital, said:  “We see the combination of PANDOO with Highvern and Permian as an important step towards building a next-generation, truly international, differentiated platform for fund services and private capital solutions. We are grateful for the opportunity and trust given to us to support PANDOO in its future strategy and will continue to invest in its people, technology and service excellence.” Media contact 

For many fund managers, ESG data collection started as an afterthought rather than a structured operational process. How ESG data is collected is often a clear indicator of how seriously a fund approaches ESG. And under the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), it is no longer a nice-to-have. In this article, Permian’s ESG Director Agata Bremer outlines the typical stages of ESG data maturity, the practical challenges funds face at each step, and what a more sustainable set-up looks like. "For many in the alternative investment industry, ESG reporting started as an afterthought: a spreadsheet here, an email there, a template dropped into SharePoint the week before an LP request landed. That approach worked when ESG was a nice-to-have. Under SFDR, it no longer does. The margin for error is much smaller, and manual processes break down quickly", says Agata. The four stages of ESG data maturity Most fund managers fall somewhere along a spectrum from fully manual to fully integrated, according to Agata. Understanding where you are positioned matters, because the risks and costs of staying put differ significantly at each stage. Stage 1: Spreadsheets and email Excel trackers, Google Sheets, and ESG data collected via email from portfolio companies. This is where most funds start. The setup is simple and flexible, but manual entry increases errors, audit trails are weak, and tracing data back to source quickly becomes painful. Stage 2: Standardised templates in cloud storage Structured questionnaires stored in SharePoint or OneDrive improve consistency and version control. Internal coordination improves, but the process remains manual. Each reporting cycle requires consolidation, follow-ups, and significant hands-on effort, which limits scalability. Stage 3: ESG software platforms Dedicated ESG tools centralise data collection, automate aggregation, and create an audit trail. For many mid-size PE and VC funds with SFDR Article 8 obligations, this is a logical next step. The limitation is that platforms only work well if roles, timing, and data ownership are already clearly defined. Stage 4: Integrated ESG data infrastructure ESG data collection is embedded into the broader fund administration and portfolio monitoring setup. Reporting is largely automated, and regulatory defensibility is stronger. This stage requires more upfront investment but delivers the highest level of control and efficiency. This is where we see large PE firms and multi-fund managers heading, but it requires mature internal processes and meaningful investment before the benefits land. Where problems usually arise According to Agata, ESG reporting issues are rarely caused by technology. “The real problems are almost always about process and ownership,” she says. Common failure points include collecting data only once a year under time pressure, unclear responsibility for chasing and validating data, and expanding reporting scope without a clear data structure to support it. A realistic way to improve Funds don’t need fully integrated infrastructure immediately. What matters is sequencing. “Start by defining exactly which ESG metrics are required and why. Then standardise how those metrics are collected, even if that still happens in spreadsheets. Only once the data flow is stable does it make sense to introduce software or broader system integration,” Agata explains. “The tool matters less than the discipline behind it,” she concludes. “A simple, well-run process will always outperform a sophisticated system that’s poorly implemented.” Need support? At Permian, we support alternative investment fund managers in building ESG data processes that stand up to SFDR requirements and scale with portfolio complexity. Get in touch to discuss how your current ESG data setup can be strengthened and scaled.