CC, Kirkland advise on FTSE 100 Informa’s £2.2bn live events buy

Clifford Chance and Kirkland & Ellis have advised on Informa’s £2.2 billion acquisition of Blackstone-owned events business Clarion, in a deal designed to reshape the FTSE 100 group around its live events operations.

Clifford Chance acted for Informa, while Kirkland advised Blackstone on the sale.

Informa is funding the acquisition through a mix of acquisition financing and a roughly £940 million equity raise. At the same time, the company announced plans to separate its academic publishing business Taylor & Francis as it focuses on B2B live events.

Clarion runs events across sectors including technology, gaming, travel, design, energy and defence. Informa already operates more than 800 events globally, including the Monaco Yacht Show and Cannes Lions.

Blackstone bought Clarion from Providence Equity Partners in 2017 for a reported £600 million.

Clifford Chance was on the other side of that deal, advising Blackstone on the acquisition, with partner Spencer Baylin among the team. Weil advised Providence.

The transaction is the latest big-ticket deal in the live events sector this year. PE firms Providence and Searchlight sold UK events company Hyve to buyout house Hellman & Friedman for £1.3 billion in June, with Latham, Kirkland and Linklaters advising.

Advising

Clifford Chance’s team was led by London M&A and Informa relationship partners Steven Fox and Katherine Moir, with corporate partners Erik O’Connor and Olivia Higgs also involved.

A separate Clifford Chance team led by partners Annie Lewis - who rejoined the firm from Blackstone last year - and London head of private capital Spencer Baylin advised Clarion.

Kirkland’s corporate team included London partners Greg Scott, David Higgins and Chris Connolly, alongside lawyers from its debt finance and tax teams.