Sweden's EQT launches $3.76 billion tender offer to take Japan's Kakaku.com private
FILE PHOTO: A view shows EQT AB's logo at the company's office in Tokyo, Japan May 13, 2025. REUTERS/Miho Uranaka/File Photo
May 12 : Swedish investment firm EQT said on Tuesday it would launch a tender offer to take Japanese classifieds and marketplace platform Kakaku.com private, valuing the company at 593.51 billion yen ($3.76 billion).
The offer values Kakaku.com at 3,000 yen per share, EQT said in a statement, representing a 2.6 per cent premium to Tuesday's closing price.
The platform operates a portfolio of digital platforms in Japan, including price comparison site Kakaku.com, restaurant review and reservation platform Tabelog and job search service Kyujin Box.
The deal is EQT's latest Japan take-private, following Fujitec, CareNet and Mamezo, as the Swedish PE firm expands its footprint in the country's tech sector. The firm ranks among the world's largest investors in IT services.
Digital Garage and KDDI, which hold 38.1 per cent of Kakaku.com, have agreed to sell their shares. Digital Garage will reinvest for about a 20 per cent stake in the tender offeror group.
The Japanese company's board and a special committee unanimously backed the offer and recommended shareholders tender their shares, EQT said.
The transaction remains subject to customary regulatory approvals.
($1 = 157.6400 yen)
