TEG Group’s owners could launch an auction for the Australian entertainment business from this April, according to reports.
Silver Lake, which bought the Ticketek owner for a reported $1bn in 2019, was said to have been in talks with investment banks over the future of its ownership late last year.
Now The Australian reports that the live entertainment, data and tech group’s private equity owners are expected to launch a sale process this April. It is said that investment bank Jefferies has been appointed to facilitate a deal.
“It is logical for private equity firms to be the most likely buyers,” reads the Australian report, noting opportunity abounds “for a strategy player to be competitive in an auction.”
Separate stories from the Australian Financial Review suggest Silver Lake is looking for more than $2bn for the business and that TEG is being pitched to big global buyout funds as “a unique business worldwide”.
Silver Lake itself has not publicly commented on the stories relating to a potential sale.
Silver Lake bought the business from investment firm Affinity Equity Partners, which itself had bought Ticketek from Nine Entertainment for $640m in 2015.
With the Silver Lake deal completing in early 2020, like many other live entertainment businesses, TEG suffered during the pandemic. Not long after the deal was completed, a minority stake was sold to Sydney-based private equity firm Mercury Capital.
Based in Sydney, TEG’s interests also include TEG Live, Qudos Bank Arena, SXSW Sydney, TEG Van Egmond, Laneway Festival, Handsome Tours, Eventopia, and TEG Dainty, Paul Dainty’s concert and events promotion company which it acquired in 2016.
Ticketek rolled out into the UK in 2020 having acquired MJR Group the previous year.