Mail.Ru Group sold HeadHunter portal 10 billion rubles. The buyer was a group of investors led by private equity fund “Elbrus Capital»
Holding Mail.Ru Group has closed a deal to sell Russia’s largest portal for job search HeadHunter, said the Internet company reported on the results of 2015. This information was also confirmed RBC representative HeadHunter Ivan Tyutyundzhi
The buyer was a group of investors led by the Foundation “Elbrus Capital ‘equity, the transaction amount -.. 10 billion rubles, according to a release from Mail.Ru Group. The deal was closed on February 25. The entire amount will be paid in two installments:.. First, in the amount of 5.5 billion rubles has already been obtained in Mail.Ru Group, the second in the amount of 4.5 billion rubles will be received until April 30, 2016
<. p> HeadHunter company owns the largest in RuNet recruitment portal hh.ru and Career.ru site. In addition, recruitment HeadHunter ruled direction Holding Mail.Ru Group – «Работа@Mail.ru» (the portal will be managed by HeadHunter after separation from Mail.Ru Group, said CEO HeadHunter Mikhail Zhukov in conversation with RBC)
<. p> The protracted deal
Mail.Ru tried to sell the assets of the Fund “Elbrus Capital” in the autumn of 2014, but in April last year, told investors that the deal fell through. “Elbrus Capital” failed to attract money to the West for investments in Russian assets in the conditions of Russia and the West uneasy political relations, he told RBC year ago, a source close to one of the parties to the transaction. In the fall of 2014, the parties discussed a potential deal to HeadHunter for the same 10 billion rubles.
Since the autumn of 2014, in fact, completely changed the structure of buyers pool, where in addition to “Elbrus Capital” are included Russian and foreign funds, said RBC managing partner of “Elbrus Capital” Dmitry Kryukov. The original agreement with Mail.Ru Group was signed in November 2014, and the deal had to close in February 2015. However, in December 2014 the ruble has fallen sharply, and foreign investors were part of a syndicate, decided not to participate in the purchase of an asset. Almost a year had gone in “Elbrus Capital” on the search for new partners in the transaction. According to “Vedomosti”, one of the investors became bank Goldman Sachs
Natalia Gojayeva, CEO hh.ru competitor -. The Superjob.ru portal, said the final amount of the deal “fairly modest”. “N about and it is quite clear: the economic situation in the market as a whole is not in favor of the seller,” – she said.
«HeadHunter – ruble assets, they have remained virtually unchanged revenues and EBITDA for the two years that negotiating the purchase underway, so do not change the price,” – says the managing partner of “Elbrus capital “Dmitry Kryukov.
Revenue HeadHunter decreased by 1.5% in 2015 to 3 billion rubles., EBITDA fell by 2.5%, to 1.5 billion rubles.
HeadHunter, while non-core assets, almost did not develop within the Mail.Ru Group, the analyst FK “Opening” Alexander Vengranovich. That is why an asset is sold at a much lower ratio to EBITDA (6,6 to EBITDA in 2015) than in the entire Mail.Ru Group. The deal is beneficial to both sides: HeadHunter will be able to develop in the framework of “Elbrus Capital” and Mail.Ru Group will receive enough cash to pay off the balance owed for “VKontakte” and already by the end of 2016 to begin to pay dividends, indicates Vengranovich
.
Mail.Ru Group took a loan from Gazprombank in the amount of 22.2 billion rubles. to buy 48% of the social network “VKontakte” from UCP fund. As of December 31, 2015 the size of the outstanding debt amounted to 6.9 billion rubles., According to the company’s annual report.
The prospect for HeadHunter
Direct Fund investment “Elbrus Capital,” according to the company’s website, “advises private equity funds for investment in the company, leading to the Russian and CIS markets and striving for further growth.” Its founders are former managing director of “Renaissance Capital” Dmitry Kryukov, former president of A1 investment company (part of the “Alfa Group” consortium), Alexander Savin and managing the Dutch fund Waterland Private Equity Robert Tilin.
Fund size It is $ 550 million, but as Kryukov explains, “Elbrus Capital” does not invest a large amount of money in the assets individually, and tries to attract partners. In January 2015, he, together with a consortium of investors has acquired 27% stake in the company “Cyan Group”, which manages the service to search for housing Cian.ru. The package price was not disclosed
According to Kryukov, the purchase of two leading asset in the online klassifaydov market in Russia (cyan – real estate and of HeadHunter – in recruitment). does not mean that the company is going to unite them into a single business line -obyavleny. “We are looking at growing sector, where it is possible to create valuable business assets klassifaydy seem to us just this sector”, – he explains
HeadHunter is one of the largest online resources to find employment not only in Russia. but also in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus and Azerbaijan. The site is ranked third in the world in attendance among resources in the “Labor & Employment” category, according to Similarweb. In January 2016 caused users hh.ru 33.2 million visits.
CEO HeadHunter Mikhail Zhukov said that the company is “encouraged” deal with “Elbrus Capital,” because the new owner is interested in the growth of business value through the development of its technological component. In the short term HeadHunter may develop, including through acquisitions of other companies. Specific names of Zhukov did not lead, but suggested that this may be primarily for technology absorption. HeadHunter is planning to invest in machine learning and other areas of technology.
«Elbrus Capital” has long-standing relationships with Mail.Ru Group. In 2007, about 5% Mail.Ru Group (then called Digital Sky Technologies) acquired the Renaissance Private Equity Fund. In 2009, Kryukov and his partners bought the “Renaissance” fund management company. Together with her and they got assets, including Mail.Ru Group. After the restructuring of the group share of “Elbrus Capital” in Mail.Ru blurred to less than 1%.
Since 2007, the Foundation spent more than 70 transactions. Also Cian.ru to list «Elbrus Capital” includes provider of financial and human resources outsourcing in Russia and CIS of Intercomp, a network of health clinics “National Medical Network”, the operator of broadband Internet access “Strela Telecom” service rental nomad carpets and clothing Blesk InCare, Express delivery services SPSR-Express, the online trading platform B2B-Center. Also, the “Elbrus” is media assets: stakes in the company Media-1 TV (TV is co-owner of the holding YUTV, essential control channels and the Disney Yu), the share in the “Select Radio” group (which owns regional radio stations).
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