Buyout houses circle €1bn Global Blue

Sonnie Ehrendal
16 May 2012

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EQT, BC Partners, TH Lee Partners, Silver Lake Partners and Partners Group have reportedly entered a second round of bidding for Equistone's tax-free retail services company Global Blue.

The company may be valued at up to €1bn, based on a €100m EBITDA, banking sources have told newswire Reuters.

JP Morgan has provided senior debt at 4x EBITDA as staple financing for the deal. Meanwhile, other banks are looking to the high-yield debt market to provide packages at 4.5x EBITDA. According to the sources, the latter would likely receive a B+ rating from S&P.

Equistone, at the time operating as Barclays Private Equity, bought the business from Apax Partners in a 2007 SBO. The deal was supported by a debt and mezzanine package from CIBC World Markets.

Global Blue, founded as Tax Free Shopping in 1980, provides services to allow international travellers to reclaim tax on transactions. It was relocated from its native Sweden to Nyon, Switzerland, in 2001 and employs around 1,200 staff.