Pinewood Technologies Group, which trades as Pinewood.AI, disclosed on 29 January that Apax Partners was considering a cash offer of 500p a share, valuing the automotive software company at about £575m.
Why Apax Partners is buying Pinewood Technologies Group plc (Pinewood.AI)
Apax did not publish a rationale. Pinewood provides cloud-based dealer management software covering sales, aftersales, accounting and CRM to car retailers and manufacturers in 36 countries.
Deal terms and financing
The possible offer was 500p per share in cash, implying about £575m for the roughly 115 million shares in issue.
Regulatory approvals and timing
On 13 February 2026 Apax announced that, in light of prevailing challenging market conditions, it did not intend to make an offer, restricting it under Rule 2.8 of the Takeover Code. Pinewood's board responded on 16 February that it remained very confident in the group's long-term prospects.
Market context
Pinewood became independent in 2024 after Pendragon sold its UK motor and leasing divisions to Lithia Motors. It bought automotive AI platform Seez in February 2025 and took full ownership of Pinewood North America, alongside a Lithia contract expected to generate about $60m of annual revenue by the end of 2028.
