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Apax Preparing a Bid for Takeover of PR Newswire

The Apax private equity group is preparing a bid for the takeover of PR Newswire, a network for distribution of corporate press releases, which is considered highly profitable. The network belongs to the British UBM and is a major portion of the company`s business. The Sunday Times reported that Apax was working on a plan for the takeover in the past few weeks, which is estimated to coast about $800 million or even more. UBM has said several times in the past that no synergy exists between PR Newswire and the rest of its business which includes the organization of exhibitions in the UK.

David Levin, Chief Executive Officer of UBM, told the press that he would sell PR Newswire if he receives a good price for it, back in April 2005. Andy Crow, an executive at UBM, said: "We have said for all our businesses, there are no sacred cows," in a conference in Barcelona last week. PR Network, a mostly an American operation, is growing at an extremely fast pace, as the demand for company financial reports in the US is growing. Analysts have raised the price estimates fro PR Wire substantially in the last year.

Apax Partners is one of the world`s leading private investment groups. The group manages funds worth approximately $20 billion for investment establishments around the world. Apax has made investments in five major sectors: telecommunications and technology, medicine, financial services, media and retail.