‘Survivor’, ‘Black Mirror’ Producer Banijay to Go Public in $4B Merger
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Banijay, the French-based production company whose hits shows include Survivor, Black Mirror and MasterChef, is set to merge with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), or “blank check company” with support from billionaires Bernard Arnault and Vincent Bolloré.
The deal would see Banijay’s assets folded into a new company, called FL Entertainment, together with Betclic, an online sports gambling company. FL Entertainment, of which Bolloré is an investor, will merge with SPAC Pegasus Entrepreneurs, which is backed by European asset management company Tikehau Capital and investment firm Financière Agache. The group will be floated on Amsterdam’s Euronext stock market on July 1 with an initial enterprise value of $7.58 billion (€7.2 billion), a figure that includes debt. The company’s equity value is around $4.3 billion (€4.1 billion).
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Existing shareholders in Banijay and Betclic’s, including French media giant Vivendi, have agreed to reinvest in the new company. Banijay Chairman Chairman Stéphane Courbit called the merger a new “milestone” in the company’s development.
“In forming FL Entertainment with Pegasus Entrepreneurs, our Chairman Stéphane Courbit has created new opportunities for Banijay to grow and maintain its resilient position in the market,” Banijay CEO Marco Bassetti said in a statement. “Aligning us with gold standard ESG and business excellence targets, the listing further strengthens our offering and we are all proud of the efforts of the wider LOV Group team in reaching this momentous milestone.”
Banijay is one of the world’s largest television production groups, with more than 120 production companies across 22 countries. In 2019 Banijay acquired Endemol Shine, producer of The Voice and Big Brother, for $2.2 billion.
The deal comes as private equity investment is pouring into the entertainment industry, with PE groups like Blackstone backing Candle Media, an investment venture which acquired kids television group Moonbug Entertainment, Fauda producers Faraway Road Productions, and Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine, and KKR investing in the merged group of French and German film and TV companies Mediawan and Leonine.
