Holway: Providence Equity bids world record amount for Informa

A quick ‘heads up’ from Richard:Informa gets bid from private equity consortium led by Providence Equity. Depending on whose maths you trust, the bid is more or less $6 billion: less according to The Times, but almost $7 billion according to the Financial Times (the FT correctly notes that the value of Informa’s debt also needs to be added on).

Either way, it would rank as the world’s largest private equity bid since leveraged finance markets seized up late last summer. That would be costly (using high-yield debt costing 11.75 per cent). We’re not convinced it’s going to happen (perhaps it’s a good day for Informa shareholders to sell).

Duncan Chapple

Duncan Chapple is the preeminent consultant on optimising international analyst relations and the value created by analyst firms. As SageCircle research director, Chapple directs programs that assess and increase the business value of relationships with industry analysts and sourcing advisors.