Apax Partners Sells its 13% Stake in Baltic Classifieds Group

The leading global private equity advisory firm Apax has sold its shares in the Baltic Classifieds Group (BCG) to public market investors.

According to a regulatory filing published on 15 July, Antler EquityCo, which is controlled by funds advised by Apax, sold:

...approximately 63 million ordinary shares in the capital of the Company, representing approximately 13% of the Company's issued ordinary share capital, at a price of 247 pence per share, raising gross sale proceeds of approximately £156 million. This represents a full exit by Antler of its position in the Company.

Approximately 59 million shares were sold to institutional investors, with the remaining four million shares returned to BCG.

Tom Hall, partner for Internet and Consumer at Apax, commented:

"We are very proud to have had the opportunity to parner with BCG and its extraordinary management team over the past five years, in Apax's first investment in the Baltic region.

"Justinas, Simonas, Lina and the wider team—who were terrific to work with from start to finish—have built a colleciton of sites in the Baltic countries that provide outstanding value to buyers and sellers in all the key verticals.

"They have furthermore translated this cosumer value into exceptional value for shareholders by way of consistent double-digit top line growth and industry leading cash flow margins.

"Apax's shares have gone to high quality public market investors, which is testament to the team and the business they have built. We wish BCG, and their new owners, all the very best for what we are confident will be continued strong peformance for many years to come."

BCG operates leading marketplaces across several verticals in several of the Baltic countries, including the market-leading real estate portals KV.ee in Estonia, City24 in Estonia and Latvia, and Aruodas in its native Lithuania.

The Group recorded YoY revenue growth of 19% in its full-year results published earlier this month, with real estate revenue up 20% YoY to circa €18 million.

The firm says its market leadership in real estate is significant in both Lithuania—where the company is based—and Estonia. Aruodas (Lithuania) achieves 17x more time spent on its real estate portal than its closest competitor, while KV (Estonia) achieves 19x more time spent on its website than the closest competitor.