58.com Signs $8.7 billion Take-Private Transaction

China’s largest classified advertising platform 58.com announced today that it has entered into a merger agreement with Quantum Bloom Group Ltd. The proposed take-private transaction is estimated to have an equity value of $8.7 million.

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Quantum Bloom Company Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Quantum Bloom Group Ltd, will merge and into 58.com, with 58.com being the surviving company and becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of Quantum Bloom Group Ltd.

Under the agreement, 58.com will be acquired by a consortium of investors that includes Warburg Pincus Asia LLC, General Atlantic Singapore Fund Pte Ltd., Ocean Link Partners and 58.com Chairman and CEO Yao Jinbo.

The consortium plans to fund the merger through a combination of cash contributions, rollover equity contributions from certain shareholders and $3.5 billion in term loans from Shanghai Pudong Development Bank Co, Ltd.

Pursuant to the deal, the consortium will purchase 58.com issued common shares at a cash price of $28 per share, with a total transaction value of approximately $8.7 billion.

The transaction is expected to be completed in the second half of this year. 58.com will become a privately held company, and its American shares will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange.