Real estate firm DTZ acquires Cushman & Wakefield for $2 billion

DTZ is acquiring Cushman & Wakefield for a reported $2.04 billion, and the new company will use the Cushman & Wakefield brand providing real estate services worldwide.

Exor SpA, an Italian investment firm that owns most of New York-based Cushman & Wakefield, told the Associated Press that global real estate firm DTZ will buy Cushman for $2.04 billion. The deal is expected to close by the end of the year, subject to regulatory approval.

The new company will have revenue of more than $5.5 billion, more than 43,000 employees and will manage more than 4 billion square feet globally on behalf of institutional, corporate and private clients.

In January, DTZ acquired Cassidy Turley, a provider of commercial real estate services that has 60 offices nationwide, including Fort Collins and Denver. Cushman & Wakefield has offices in Denver and Colorado Springs.

Chicago-based DTZ, a division of UGL Limited, was acquired in November by a private-equity investment consortium backed by TPG Capital, PAG Asia Capital and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan.

Speaking on behalf of the investors (TPG, PAG and OTPP), Ben Gray, TPG’s joint managing partner in Asia, said in a prepared statement, “We have been delighted to be a part of one of the most exciting growth stories in this industry. Our ambitions for the new Cushman & Wakefield are great, and we stand ready to assist this global leader to continue to grow and flourish through our relationships, energy and capital.”

Upon completion of the merger, Carlo Barel di Sant’Albano, current international chief executive of Cushman & Wakefield, will take a senior global leadership role. John Santora, current CEO of North America at Cushman & Wakefield, will become chief operating officer and chief integration officer and Tod Lickerman, current global CEO of DTZ will take on the role of president for the new company.

Cushman & Wakefield, founded in 1917, has 259 offices in 60 countries, employing more than 16,000 employees. DTZ has more than 26,000 employees who operate across more than 260 offices in 50 countries.

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