Argus Media sells majority stake to US fund

Britain’s Argus Media said Monday that US investment fund General Atlantic has bought a majority stake, valuing the commodity price reporting agency at almost £1.0 billion.

The transaction, which values the group at the equivalent of about $1.5 billion or 1.3 billion euros, is expected to complete in the next two months, Argus said in a statement.

Argus welcomed General Atlantic as a “strategic investor”, adding the move would help fund its “next phase of global expansion”.

General Atlantic has agreed to buy a 52-percent stake from the family of former Argus chairman and founder Jan Nasmyth, who died in 2008.

The group’s other investors, which include its journalists, are also being given the option to sell their holdings.

Executive chairman and publisher Adrian Binks will retain the majority of his “significant” shareholding alongside General Atlantic.

“We are delighted to welcome General Atlantic as our partner as we enter our next phase of growth,” Binks added in the statement.

“Argus will remain independent, focused on reporting commodities and continuing to bring transparency to opaque and vital markets.”

The London-based agency, which was established in 1970, now has more than 750 full-time employees, over 160 publications and 21 offices around the world.