IFIL Completes Acquisition of Majority Stake in Cushman & Wakefield

2 Apr, 2007, New York, NY

Leading commercial real estate firm plans to accelerate global growth strategy

IFIL Group ("IFIL"), the investment group of the Agnelli family, has completed its acquisition of a 71.5 percent stake in global real estate services giant Cushman & Wakefield for a total cash consideration of $625 million.

IFIL replaces The Rockefeller Group as majority shareholder of Cushman & Wakefield, while Cushman & Wakefield management and employees own 28.5 percent of the company's equity following the sale, according to Bruce Mosler, Cushman & Wakefield's president and chief executive officer.

"IFIL and Cushman & Wakefield have a bright future together," Mr. Mosler said. "That future is based on the many geographic and service-line growth opportunities in commercial real estate today, the abundance of capital targeting the sector, and the powerful position of the Cushman & Wakefield brand in the global marketplace."

Cushman & Wakefield is the world's pre-eminent privately held property services firm. It is present in 55 countries with 201 offices and more than 12,000 employees. Founded in 1917 in New York City, Cushman & Wakefield celebrates its 90th anniversary this year. The firm had revenues of $1.5 billion in 2006, up from $1.2 billion in 2005. Cushman & Wakefield manages 445 million square feet of property, and has the most MAIs (Members of the Appraisal Institute) of any firm. A leader in the Capital Markets arena, Cushman & Wakefield recently arranged the $1.8 billion sale of 666 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan - the largest single-building sale in U.S. history.

About Cushman & Wakefield
Cushman & Wakefield offers a complete range of services for the real estate sector, split into four main areas of activity: Transaction Services, including tenant and landlord representation in office, industrial and retail real estate; Capital Markets, including property sales, investment management, investment banking, financing and valuation services; Client Solutions, including integrated real estate strategies and related services to large corporations and property owners, and Consulting Services, including business and real estate consulting.

About IFIL
IFIL S.p.A. is the investment company of the Agnellis, one of Europe's leading entrepreneurial families, and is listed on the Italian stock exchange. IFIL actively manages a portfolio of assets operating across a range of sectors - including Automotive and Agricultural Equipment (Fiat Group), Financial Services (Gruppo Intesa Sanpaolo and Gruppo Banca Leonardo), Business Services (SGS), Paper (Sequana Capital) and Leisure and Entertainment (Juventus and Alpitour). IFIL is one of the major investment companies in Europe with a portfolio currently worth about 10.8 billion euros ($14.4 billion). Some 30 % of the company's capital is in free float with the balance held by the Agnelli family entities.

back to real estate News & Events

Printer Friendly Version