Bridgepoint agrees sale of Nordic Cinema to Chinese strategic

Under the terms of the all-cash transaction, Nordic's headquarters will remain in Stockholm, but it will operate as a subsidiary of London-based Odeon Cinema Group, which was acquired by AMC in November. That deal, worth GBP921 million ($1.2 billion), facilitated an exit for UK PE firm Terra Firma. The same month, AMC announced the $1.2 billion acquisition of US-based theater exhibitor Carmike Cinema – the deal was closed in December.

Nordic is the largest cinema operator in the Nordic and Baltic countries, operating 68 theatres with 463 screens in about 50 cities. The company also has a substantial minority interest in another 50 theatres with 201 screens, to which it provides a variety of shared services. Nordic operates different brands in seven markets, including SF Bio in Sweden, SF Kino in Norway, Finnkino in Finland, Forum Cinemas in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Additional associated theatres also operate in Denmark.

"For the third time in the past 12 months, we believe we have discovered a substantial acquisition that gives AMC yet another opportunity to further expand and diversify our geographic reach and more firmly establish AMC as the undisputed leader in movie exhibition worldwide,” AMC CEO and president Adam Aron said in a statement.

European GP Bridgepoint acquired a majority stake in Nordic Cinema from private equity firm Ratos & Bonnier Holdings in 2015 for SEK4.7 billion. The company generated SEK2.94 billion ($349 million) in revenue in 2015, including box office takings of SEK1.93 billion. Revenue for the 2016 financial year came to SEK3.16 billion. 

The Nordic transaction, which is subject to antitrust clearance by the European Commission, is expected to close before the end of June. Upon completion of the deal, AMC will operate 1,000 theatres with 11,000 screens in 15 countries in the US and across Europe, the largest cinema operator globally.

Wanda purchased AMC in 2012 from several PE investors in a deal worth $1.2 billion, and it has since been active in the cinema and entertainment sector. Recent activity includes the purchase of Hollywood film production studio Legendary Entertainment for $3.5 billion.

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• Topics
• Greater China
• Trade sale
• Consumer
• Media
• Europe
• USA
• China
• Dalian Wanda Group
• M&A
• Exit