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Britain’s Informa has struck a deal to buy conference organiser UBM for 3.8 billion pounds ($5.2 billion) in cash and stock, forming a world-leading business events and exhibitions group.
The deal, which comes almost a decade after UBM tried to buy Informa, will give it greater scale and specialisation in events, the fastest growing part of its business, Informa said.
UBM, which once had interests in newspapers and television, has focused in recent years on events, buying Advanstar Communications in 2014 and selling PR Newswire in 2016.
Analysts at Citi said the proposed deal would increase Informa’s organic growth rate and margins, assuming even modest synergies, as its exposure to events increases from around 35 percent of group revenue to almost 60 percent.
About Informa plc
Informa is the multinational events and publishing company headquartered in London. It has offices in 43 countries and 6,500 employees. It owns numerous brands including CRC Press, Datamonitor, Institute for International Research, Lloyd’s List (London Press Lloyd), Penton, Routledge, and Taylor & Francis.