European private equity firm AXA Private Equity has signed an agreement to acquire a majority stake in GO Voyages.

Published: 19 May 2010

European private equity firm AXA Private Equity has signed an agreement to acquire a majority stake in GO Voyages.

Following this investment, AXA Private Equity will hold the majority of the equity of GO Voyages alongside the management team and staff, who will have a significant interest in the company.

Reuters, citing a source close to the situation, said the company had been sold for a total enterprise value of around €400 million, the higher end of its value range. After the deal closes, AXA will have a 58 percent stake in Go Voyage, management will have a 24 percent stake, Groupe Arnault will hold 10 percent of the firm, with a unit of Rothschild holding the remaining eight percent, according to Reuters.

With sales of €843 million in the 2009/2010 financial year, up 21 percent year-on-year, and with more than 2.2 million passengers carried, GO Voyages is France’s leading online vendor of air tickets and operates a multichannel distribution strategy. The company has just embarked on a diversification programme by launching an online holiday offer on the French market. As part of its strategy of assisting and developing companies over the long run, AXA Private Equity will support GO Voyages’ management team in its last diversification step and in accelerating its growth elsewhere in Europe.

The firm believes that the arrival of AXA Private Equity will enable it to accelerate its growth at the European level by actively participating in the growth and consolidation of the various national markets.

Completion of this transaction is subject to the performance of conditions precedent including the agreement of the competition authorities in certain countries.