This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
DTZ has acquired Cushman & Wakefield for $US2 billion to create the second largest real estate services company in the world, behind CBRE.
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:”Table Normal”;
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:”;
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:”Times New Roman”,”serif”;
mso-fareast-language:EN-US;}
The merger comes just 11 months after UGL completed the sale of DTZ to the TPG consortium, which also included the Ontario Teachers` Pension Plan and Hong Kong-based PAG Asia Capital for $US1.14 billion.
UGL initially flirted with the idea of floating DTZ on the ASX. The sale to the TPG consortium delivered a significant windfall for UGL, which acquired DTZ in December 2011 for only £77.5 million ($A119 million).
The new company, which will operate under the Cushman & Wakefield brand, will have revenues over $US5.5 billion, over 43,000 employees and will manage more than 4 billion sq ft of real estate globally.
Prior to the merger, DTZ boasted global revenue of approximately $2.9 billion in 2014, trailing behind CBRE ($9bn) and JLL ($4bn).
The beefed up Cushman & Wakefield will move to second place, behind CBRE.
CEO and chairman Brett White said DTZ is elated to be merging under the prominent Cushman & Wakefield brand.
“The companies have remarkably complementary skills and reach in different geographies,” he added.
Cushman & Wakefield`s CEO Edward Forst said the combined company will have an enhanced ability.
Upon completion of the merger, Carlo Barel di Sant’Albano, current International CEO of Cushman & Wakefield and EMEA CEO, will take a senior global leadership role.
John Santora, current CEO of North America at Cushman & Wakefield, will become Chief Operating Officer and Chief Integration Officer and Tod Lickerman, current Global CEO of DTZ, will assume the role of President of the global company.
EXOR, Cushman & Wakefield’s 80.1% stockholder has backed the deal.
TPG founding partner David Bonderman said the potential created by this combination would not have been possible without EXOR`s support and positioning of Cushman & Wakefield over the last eight years.
The transaction is expected to close before the end of the year and is subject to customary closing conditions.
Australian Property Journal
