Dun & Bradstreet Holdings, Inc. (“Dun & Bradstreet” or the “Company”) (NYSE:DNB), a leading global provider of business decisioning data and analytics, through its subsidiary Dun & Bradstreet Holdings BV, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase the outstanding shares of Bisnode Business Information Group AB (“Bisnode”), a leading European data and analytics firm and long-standing member of the Dun & Bradstreet Worldwide Network. The estimated purchase price upon closing is 7.2B SEK or approximately $818 million USD. The transaction is expected to close in January 2021, subject to required regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.
“We are pleased to bring Bisnode into the Dun & Bradstreet family following a nearly two-decade strategic alliance,” said Anthony Jabbour, Chief Executive Officer at Dun & Bradstreet. “The powerful combination of our data, analytics and innovative solutions, paired with Bisnode’s deep client relationships and expertise in European markets will provide our existing and future clients with vital business intelligence to support their own growth ambitions. We look forward to welcoming the Bisnode team to Dun & Bradstreet and to working together to grow the global business.”
As Dun & Bradstreet unites the two complementary organizations after a successful 17-year alliance, it builds on the strong foundations of the relationship to deliver numerous strategic benefits that align to the Company’s previously stated growth objectives:
The acquisition positions Dun & Bradstreet to rapidly expand across the Scandinavian, DACH (Germany, Austria and Switzerland) and central European countries.
Upon transaction close, Dun & Bradstreet will add over 110,000 Bisnode customers to its client base, ranging from small businesses to large enterprises, including having direct access to nearly 50 Global 500 companies headquartered in Bisnode territories.
The deal provides direct access to Bisnode’s 33 million records from 550+ sources throughout Europe, contributing to the scale, depth, diversity and accuracy of the Company’s constantly expanding Data Cloud that contains comprehensive information on more than 360 million total businesses.
Upon transaction close, the Company plans to rapidly introduce its modern Finance & Risk and Sales & Marketing solutions at scale to clients across Europe, providing vital business intelligence to help them compete, thrive and grow.
With deep industry roots, a long-established alliance and local European expertise, the Dun & Bradstreet and Bisnode teams are well-positioned to realize operational efficiencies and hit the ground running upon transaction close.
“Integrating our two leading organizations provides significant opportunity to deliver a broader product set to a substantially larger global client base. As the international business community becomes increasingly data-driven, we look forward to combining our teams to unlock further potential, drive innovation and deliver solutions that are tuned to client and market needs,” said Neeraj Sahai, President of Dun & Bradstreet International.
Upon the close of the transaction and to further support its growth agenda, Dun & Bradstreet will establish an International Strategic Advisory Board which will be led by Sahai with inclusion of Jonas Wiström, Chief Executive Officer for Ratos AB.
“Over the past years, Bisnode has undergone a successful development where the focus has been on stability and profitability. Future growth aimed at taking a leading position requires that Bisnode participate in the consolidation that is taking place in the increasingly global market for data and analytics. We are convinced that Dun & Bradstreet is the best possible partner to lead this consolidation. The combined strengths of our assets and capabilities will greatly serve our respective clients, increase competitiveness and position Dun & Bradstreet/Bisnode for long-term growth. I look forward to joining the Dun & Bradstreet International Strategic Advisory Board,” said Wiström.
Upon the close of the transaction, it is expected that 75% of the consideration would be paid in cash and 25% of the consideration would be paid in newly issued shares of common stock of the Company in a private placement.
Conference Call and Webcast Information
Dun & Bradstreet will host a conference call on October 8, 2020 at 8:30 a.m. ET to review the details of the transaction. The conference call can be accessed live over the phone by dialing 877-407-9208, or for international callers 201-493-6784. A replay will be available from 11:30 a.m. ET on October 8, 2020, through October 15, 2020, by dialing 844-512-2921, or for international callers 412-317-6671. The replay passcode will be 13711527.
The call will also be webcast live from Dun & Bradstreet’s Investor Relations website at https://investor.dnb.com. Following the completion of the call, a recorded replay of the webcast will be available on the website.
About Dun & Bradstreet
Dun & Bradstreet, a leading global provider of business decisioning data and analytics, enables companies around the world to improve their business performance. Dun & Bradstreet’s Data Cloud fuels solutions and delivers insights that empower customers to accelerate revenue, lower cost, mitigate risk, and transform their businesses. Since 1841, companies of every size have relied on Dun & Bradstreet to help them manage risk and reveal opportunity.
About Bisnode
Bisnode is a leading European provider of data and analytics specializing in customizing credit, business and market information that makes it easier for businesses to make smart decisions. Headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, and employing about 2,000 people, Bisnode is the largest strategic alliance of Dun & Bradstreet, covering the Scandinavian, DACH and central Europe regions.