Celebrating the start of a new chapter for Informa, now Informa Group, Exhibition World touched base with Charlie McCurdy, Informa Exhibitions' CEO to learn how Informa's acquisition of UBM will impact the global exhibitions industry.
Before we hear McCurdy's thoughts, let's bring you up to speed with the Informa/UBM goings-on
Informa announced on 18 June the admission of New Informa Shares to the London Stock Exchange, increasing its share capital, following the completion of its combination with UBM.
Stephen A. Carter, group chief executive, said on 18 June: “Today marks the start of an exciting chapter for Informa, as we combine our company with UBM to create a truly international B2B Information Services business.”
He added: “The new Informa Group will combine international scale, depth and breadth, and a broad range of specialist B2B capabilities to provide more options for Customers, greater opportunities for Colleagues and the potential to create significant value for Shareholders.”
The new Informa Group, employing more than 11,000 people, will own and operate a portfolio of more than 500 leading exhibitions brands serving 15 core industry verticals including Health & Nutrition, Life Sciences & Pharma, and Real Estate & Construction.
In addition, it will own a complementary portfolio of confex/conference brands, a range of specialist information and intelligence brands and strong capabilities in B2B consulting and marketing service. Through combination and increased size, it will serve businesses in growth markets including the US and China, India, Brazil, the Middle East, Europe and the UK.
Informa is pleased to announce that 427,536,794 new ordinary shares of 0.1 pence each in the capital of Informa, each issued pursuant to the recommended offer by Informa for UBM which was completed on 15 June 2018, have been admitted to listing on the premium segment of the Official List of the Financial Conduct Authority and to trading on the London Stock Exchange's main market for listed securities at 8.00 a.m. 18 June.
In accordance with the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules (the "Rules"), Informa confirms that as at close of business on 15 June 2018 its issued ordinary share capital consisted of 824,005,051 ordinary shares of 0.1 pence each. Informa does not hold any shares in Treasury. Therefore, the total number of voting rights in Informa is 1,251,541,845.
The above figure may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, Informa under the Rules.
Charlie McCurdy comments: “What has become clear over the last decade is that the many of the vertical markets that the exhibitions industry supports are truly global. We’re playing an increasingly important role in connecting business communities and brands all over the world. As a result, exhibitions companies looking to prosper in this environment need deep vertical specialisation and broad global reach. So we need to bring to bear the skills and services needed to support that reach.
“Our investments in people, technology and markets over the last several years have helped build operational capability to continue our global growth and scale. As a larger, stronger enterprise, we’ll be able to continue to invest in these initiatives. We are excited about the additional opportunities and value that we can bring to our customers through the Combination, by offering them comprehensive access to market opportunities. That’s the benefit of the portfolio of information services brands and products for the markets we serve.”
Terms used but not defined in this announcement have the meanings given in the scheme document, which was published on 14 March 2018 unless the context requires otherwise.
