Vitesse Media to buy InvestmentNews in $27.1M deal

InvestmentNews, the leading source of news, analysis and information to the financial advisory community, is being purchased by London-based Vitesse Media plc.

Vitesse, which is publicly traded on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM market, has entered into an agreement to acquire InvestmentNews from its parent, Crain Communications Inc., for approximately $27.1 million. The deal is expected to close mid-August.

The impending sale was announced early Tuesday to InvestmentNews’ 42-member team.

As part of the deal, InvestmentNews’ leadership team will remain intact — as will its award-winning editorial, multimedia, audience, custom, research & data, marketing, sales and event divisions.

“We are looking forward to the future and the many growth opportunities that lie ahead of us with Vitesse as our new owner,” said Suzanne Siracuse, the publisher of InvestmentNews. “We are thankful for all the support that Crain has given us over the years.”

Vitesse is publisher of such websites as SmallBusiness.co.uk, Growth Company Investor, Information Age, GrowthBusiness.co.uk and What Investment. It also operates a growing portfolio of events, including The Quoted Company Awards, The Global Women in IT Awards series and British Small Business Awards.

Simon Stilwell, who was appointed CEO of Vitesse in August 2017, said the acquisition of InvestmentNews is part of the company’s ongoing strategy to expand in the following areas: providing business information, live events and data & insights in the technology, financial services and diversity & inclusion sectors.

“Since I joined Vitesse last year we have overhauled the board and management team as well as the strategy and this is the first major step in executing on our growth plan,” he said.

The acquisition also marks Vitesse’s first foray onto the U.S. media landscape.

“InvestmentNews is the leading brand in its community, it fits well into the Vitesse stable and provides the company with the opportunity to pursue other bolt on opportunities to expand, especially in its events and data business,” said Mr. Stilwell. “Its American presence further allows us to expand our reach geographically, a key aspect of our future strategy.”

Upon completion of the deal, Vitesse will change its name to Bonhill Group plc, subject to shareholders’ approval.

Crain is a family-owned and operated media company based in Detroit. It is the publisher of such titles as Ad Age, AutomotiveNews and Pensions & Investments.

Crain launched InvestmentNews in 1997 as a weekly magazine covering the U.S. financial advice profession. InvestmentNews has since expanded its engagement with its core audience through the launch of an award-winning website, live events and research and data offerings.

Today, InvestmentNews is the No. 1 media brand in the financial advice market, with more than 150,000 weekly print readers. InvestmentNews.com garners an average of 545,000 unique visitors each month.

In addition, InvestmentNews operates a growing events business, which includes the Retirement Income Summit, Woman Adviser Summit and Best Practices Workshop. It is also produces editorial and custom research relevant to advisers and the businesses that serve them.

“The Crain family thanks the employees of InvestmentNews for all their hard work and efforts in building a successful brand,” said KC Crain, the president and chief operating officer of Crain