Twitter LinkedIn
    Friday, January 27
    Login
    0 Shopping Cart
    Twitter LinkedIn
    Private Equity InsiderPrivate Equity Insider
    • About Us
    • Digital Events
    • Our Network
      • Reach
      • Sponsors
      • Members
    Private Equity InsiderPrivate Equity Insider
    Home»Deals & Transactions»David Montgomery buys JPI newspapers
    Deals & Transactions

    David Montgomery buys JPI newspapers

    January 2, 20212 Mins Read
    LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email WhatsApp
    Share
    LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email WhatsApp

    Mirror Group veteran builds media group with titles including The Scotsman and Yorkshire Post.

    Newspaper veteran David Montgomery has agreed to buy The Scotsman, Yorkshire Post and other JPI Media titles for £10.2m, ending a drawn-out sales process of the UK’s third-largest local newspaper group.

    National World, Mr Montgomery’s takeover vehicle, on Thursday said the deal was set to complete on January 2.

    It concludes a long process to sell the ailing JPI, formerly known as Johnston Press, which like many peers has cut jobs following a sharp decrease in advertising during the pandemic.

    In 2018, JPI almost collapsed under the weight of its debt before being saved by lenders through a prepack administration. It sold its flagship title the i to the Daily Mail and General Trust last year for £50m.

    GoldenTree Asset Management, Fidelity, CarVal Investors and Benefit Street Partners were among the creditors who took control of the company before selling it to Mr Montgomery.

    It is the first acquisition by National World, which said it planned to buy more newspapers and become a “technology-driven” publishing group hoping to “transform the sector”. The move pits it against the UK’s largest regional news group Reach, a successor to the Mirror Group that Mr Montgomery ran in the 1990s.

    Mr Montgomery, who formerly edited the now defunct News of the World newspaper, led a consolidation of local press in 2012 with the creation of Local World, which he sold three years later to Reach, then known as Trinity Mirror, in a £187m deal.

    The UK’s local newspaper industry has long struggled to make money from online readers, while declining print circulation has pushed down revenues.

    National World estimated that JPI would make digital revenues of £17m in the year ending January 2021, out of total revenue of £85m. It anticipated that earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation would reach £6m. National World said it planned to inject £6.5m into JPI.

    David King, chief executive of JPI Media, on Thursday sent a note to staff explaining that the sale of the business would “sustain our business and local media for the longer term” as “the publishing industry is undergoing a fundamental shift”. As the announcement was made on New Year’s Eve, Mr King said “detailed staff briefings” would be held in early January.

     

    Source: Financial Times

    Related

    Can't stop reading? This and all news articles are property of their creators, many are not owned or provided by Private Equity Insider. As an event organizer and community platform, we curate content from reliable sources for your suggested reading, and advise you to read the full articles from the referenced authors and sources.

    Acquisitions deals Investments Transactions
    Share. LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email WhatsApp

    Related Posts

    University of California invests $4 bn in redemption-stricken REIT

    January 3, 2023

    Warburg Pincus acquires K2 Insurance Services from Lee Equity Partners

    December 6, 2022

    CAI raises over $1B for inaugural fund and co-investment programme

    November 18, 2022

    KKR looking to sell Canadian gas producer Westbrick for $1.13B

    November 18, 2022

    Comments are closed.

    Other Articles

    White & Case advises Triton on acquisition of Acre

    March 17, 2021

    Silver Lake’s astonishing $18B in 3 months leads list of PE pandemic defiers

    January 8, 2021

    Oakley Capital invests in ICP Education

    June 1, 2021

    US private equity continues march on the UK with £1 billion of deals

    May 27, 2021

    Private Equity Insider LLC
    1212 Avenue of the Americas
    New York City 10036
    USA

    [email protected]

    Twitter LinkedIn
    © 2023 Private Equity Insider LLC. All rights reserved.
    • About
    • Terms of Use
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact Us

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    View Cart Checkout Continue Shopping

    Sign In or Register

    Welcome Back!

    Login to your account below.


    Lost password?