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Bonhill sell-off gains momentum as £6.5m deal agreed to transfer UK and Asian operations to Mark Allen Group
- Sales include custom creation arm, Bonhill Create, as well as various magazines
- The deal must now be approved by Bonhill shareholders
- Bonhill’s assets will be transferred to a new company, MA Financial Media
Struggling publisher Bonhill has agreed to sell its UK and Asian divisions to business-to-business media group Mark Allen in a £6.5 million deal.
The sale includes the custom content creation division, Bonhill Create, as well as its fund manager-focused publications, including Portfolio Adviser, Expert Investor, Fund Selector Asia, and ESG Clarity.
The deal, which is now subject to approval by Bonhill’s shareholders, follows the announcement last week of a separate £5.4 million bid for its US arm, InvestmentNews, from an undisclosed buyer.
Magazines for fund managers such as Portfolio Adviser and Expert Investor are being sold
Mark Allen, founder and executive chairman of his namesake company, said the deal was “very important” to his family business.
“We inherit some great brands, which we want to develop with the help of an excellent and professional team of around 50 people worldwide,” he said today.
“Wealth management and financial services is an area of great interest and will add to the range of industries in which we operate.
“The acquisition also gives us a foothold in Singapore and Hong Kong, a part of the world where we have long wanted to be present.”
Mark Allen Group owns a range of B2B titles across industries – from healthcare, education and music to aviation, telecommunications and HR.
London-based Bonhill produces magazines and online publications for asset managers and organizes events for the financial industry.
Bonhill assets will be placed in a new company, MA Financial Media, with Bonhill chief executive, Patrick Ponsford, becoming the head of the new company.
Ponsford said the deal will help Bonhill rebuild and grow the company after “a rough couple of years” in which Covid hit the company’s events division.
“With our range of leading brands, it’s a pleasure to be part of a full-blooded B2B media company that really understands what we do and how we do it,” said Ponsford.
“Being part of this larger group with access to new technology and data platforms will help us accelerate our growth plans.
“It’s been a tough few years with Covid impacting our significant event portfolio and a new home will help us rebuild and grow the business.”
Provided shareholders approve the offer, this will be the fourth deal the Mark Allen Group has closed this fiscal year.
The first of these was the acquisition of Regen, an exhibition, conference and networking event for the regeneration industry in Liverpool.
This was followed by the acquisition of EMEX, a net zero and energy management exchange.
In November it bought Sterling Events, another Liverpool company that organizes trade shows for the healthcare sector.
Mark Allen’s latest audited accounts to March 2022 show a turnover of £60 million, up 37 per cent on the previous year, and pre-tax profit of £9.3 million, up 54 per cent on of the previous year.
Bonhill announced a strategic review in October after warning it would suffer losses as customers increasingly cut back on marketing spending.