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The start-up's co-founder is selling to Japan – and yet remains inextricably linked to Avaloq. finews.asia notches up the many ways Francisco Fernandez is winning with Avaloq's sale to NEC.

1. Lotsa Money

The rich price – 2.05 billion Swiss francs ($2.26 billion) – tops Avaloq’s hoped-for valuation (kudos to Barclays’ and Goldman Sachs’ investment bankers). That translates to a 574 million franc gain for co-founder Francisco Fernandez, who holds 28 percent of the company. Fernandez already sold down some stock more than three years ago, when Warburg Pincus took a minority stake for 350 million francs.

2. Dream Candidate Found

The deal isn’t just financially hugely favorable for Francisco Fernandez: he has also found the ideal suitor for Avaloq in big tech. Previous efforts to woo a big firm like Google or Apple foundered, but NEC is a giant in its own right. For all of Fernandez’s big Silicon Valley aspirations, he remains more of a matter-of-fact IT whiz than a flamboyant tech bro. Fernandez’s mentality is more suited to Tokyo than to San Francisco.

3. Winning Warburg Pincus Clash

Warburg Pincus forecast a rosy future for Avaloq when it bought its stake three years ago: the Swiss firm would have resources to tackle the U.S. and Asian market and equip itself for a public listing in three to five years. The relationship faltered, as finews.com reported, last year when Avaloq couldn’t show results fast enough and C-suite personalities clashed. Fernandez won: Warburg Pincus retreats while he remains in an as-yet undefined role (see point 4).

4. (Pseudo) Independence

The move grants Avaloq – and Fernandez – miles of freedom. While his precise role will be hashed out with NEC in the coming weeks, Fernandez is likely to remain the public face of the company he co-founded 22 years ago (see point 5). Japan is a culturally and geographically a long way from Zurich: a buyer closer to home – or another private equity owner – would have curbed the charismatic co-founder’s influence far more than NEC ever will.

5. Job Security