LONDON â€" The European private equity firm CVC Capital Partners has agreed to buy the Italian credit data and business intelligence company Cerved from two rival private equity firms, Bain Capital and Clessidra.
Under the terms of the deal, CVC Capital will pay for 1.13 billion euros , or $1.49 billion, for Cerved.
The private equity firm will seek to expand Cerved's business outside its core Italian market, where it already serves around 80 percent of the Southern European countries' leading companies, according to a statement released late on Wednesday.
‘‘Our plan is to continue pursuing the growth of the business both organically and through acquisitions,'' Cerved's chief executive, Gianandrea De Bernardis, said in a statement.
Bain Capital and Clessidra created the Italian company in 2008 after the private equity firms bought several units from local banks to form Cerved.
Last year, the Italian company, which currently employs around 1,000 people, reported revenues of 292 million euros, a 9 percent increase from 2011, according to Cerved's Web site.
Deutsche Bank advised CVC Capital on the deal, while HSBC advised Bain Capital and Clessidra. Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank and HSBC provided financing for the acquisition.
