Private equity owners of Italian technology group TeamSystem are discussing a sale of a stake in the business at a more than €8bn valuation, according to people familiar with the matter. Hellman & Friedman, the firm that acquired TeamSystem a decade ago, is working with bankers to explore the sale of a minority stake, with talks still at early stages and no transaction certain.

The group was bought by Hellman & Friedman in 2016 for about €1.2bn; its sales have grown several times since then and now generate revenues of €1.15bn, up from roughly €250mn a decade ago. TeamSystem provides accounting, payroll and business management software for small and medium‑sized enterprises, is rolling out AI products and may be more resilient to technology shifts because of its 3mn‑strong customer base.

Investor appetite for software groups has been tested by fears of AI disruption, leading to shelved plans such as the London IPO of the €19bn European software group Visma. Hellman & Friedman has previously sold stakes in TeamSystem, most recently in 2023, and a 2021 deal delivered returns of roughly three times investors’ money. Alongside TeamSystem, Hellman & Friedman acquired the business events company Hyve for $1.8bn in June and manages over $115bn of assets. Both Hellman & Friedman and TeamSystem declined to comment.