D&B made good on its promise to invest for growth in Asia by acquiring a majority stake in RoadWay.
RoadWay is one of China’s largest data base marketing companies with an extensive database consisting of 8 million enterprise and 80 million consumer data records. Specifics of the transaction were not disclosed.
The combination of D&B credit information and RoadWay’s direct marketing services provides a one-stop service for Sales & Marketing Solutions (S&MS) to customers in China. As a result of this acquisition, Huaxia D&B China (HDBC), D&B’s local joint venture, will merge its Sales & Marketing business into RoadWay so that the latter will become the specialized arm of HDBC in China. RoadWay will be renamed “Shanghai RoadWay D&B Marketing Services Co. Limited (RoadWay D&B).
According to Chinese press reports D&B was said to have paid US$ 60 million for RoadWay, which has US$ 6.5 million of annual revenues. Based on what is known about D&B’s cautious acquisition approach, a 10 x revenue multiple can be dismissed as wishful thinking. D&B was quick to issue the following statement: “D&B clarifies today that the rumored sum of $60million as the acquisition price for Roadway reported by some web media is substantially overstated. Although the company does not release any number, D&B says that its investments worldwide are always rational and cautious so as to protect investors and shareholder’ interests. The successful acquisitions and mergers in the Asia Pacific region and worldwide in recent years have brought D&B improved competencies in the local markets and enriched its global business database and product offerings. Details of the transaction will be disclosed in the company’s quarterly earnings report.” Source: D&B China Press Release and Local Press Coverage
BIIA Newsletter July = August 2009 Issue
