Informa nears deal to buy Cannes Lions owner Ascential for £1bn

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

UK events group Informa is in advanced talks to acquire listed rival Ascential, which owns global conferences including advertising festival Cannes Lions, for about £1bn.

The events industry has bounced back strongly from the pandemic, exceeding pre-Covid levels as businesses flooded back to in-person conferences and awards shows.

In the latest deal in the booming events market, Informa is close to striking an agreement to acquire Ascential, according to two people familiar with the talks.

The deal could be announced as early as Wednesday when Informa, the events, digital marketing and academic publisher, is due to report its latest financial results. One person warned that the deal had not been signed and could still not happen. Informa declined to comment. Ascential did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Ascential has recently simplified its business to be mainly focused on events, with additional revenues from associated subscription and advisory services. This has made it an easier acquisition for Informa, already the world’s biggest events company.

Ascential, which employs about 700 people, announced plans in March to return £850mn to shareholders after the £1.4bn sale of its digital commerce and trend forecasting divisions. Ascential was trading at 367p on Tuesday, giving it a market capitalisation of £749mn.

Informa’s shares have risen by about 14 per cent in the past year, giving the business a market capitalisation of £11.3bn on Tuesday afternoon. The company has grown every quarter since the low point reached during the pandemic, which shut down the global events industry.

Under Stephen Carter, former chief executive of communications regulator Ofcom, Informa has been active in expanding its business through acquisitions, including events group Tarsus from Charterhouse Capital Partners for $940mn in March last year.

The same month, Hyve was acquired by private equity group Providence Equity Partners for $580mn, and rival Cvent by Blackstone for $4.6bn, showing the extent of investor interest in the growing events industry.

Ascential is one of the few remaining events companies of any scale. Analysts at Peel Hunt said Ascential’s events were “prestigious ones, with longevity of growth, which should merit a premium valuation”.

Peel Hunt described Cannes Lions as the “Oscars” of the advertising industry. Ascential also owns Money20/20, a series of key events for the fintech sector held in Asia in April, Europe in June and the US in October.

Ascential held a two-day capital markets event at Cannes Lions this year, where it highlighted the potential for future growth, including M&A opportunities.

Peel Hunt said: “The company has divested many less-prestigious events over the years. This allows it to command premium pricing for delegates and large sponsorship deals, as well as build strong competitive moats.”