HBX Group, the parent company of the largest bed bank in the world, Hotelbeds, will announce this Thursday its debut on the Continuous Market next February, thus becoming one of the first major IPOs in Europe in 2025.
The company aims to achieve a valuation of between 5,000 and 6,000 million eurosas confirmed by sources familiar with the operation to Europa Press. With the operation, the company seeks to attract the interest of large investors and consolidate its position in the thriving ‘travelTech’ sector.
The company will launch this Thursday the document known as ITF (intention to list, for its acronym in English), which marks the beginning of the market debut process. The final jump to the trading floor is scheduled for the month of February.
Born in Palma de Mallorca more than two decades ago as part of Barceló TravelHotelbeds has transformed into a global tourism technology giant. Its business model, pioneer in the bed bank concept, consists of the massive purchase of hotel rooms to obtain discounts and their subsequent resale to travel agencies, airlines and tour operators.
After its acquisition in 2016 by the British venture capital fund Cinven and the Canadian pension fund Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) for around 1.2 billion euros, the company, which operates a wholesale platform that connects hotels with travel agencies , airlines and tour operators, has experienced meteoric growth.
In 2023, HBX Group had a turnover of 8.4 billion euros, 40% more than in 2019. With more than 3,600 experts in 170 countries and 6.2 billion daily searches on its platformsthe company has become a key player in connecting supply and demand in the tourism sector worldwide.
HBX Group operates cloud-based technology platforms that offer access to a wide range of travel products and services, including transfers, excursions, tours, meetings and events, as well as hotel technology, financial technology and insurance products.
In addition to Civen and the Canadian pension fund CPPIB, the Swedish investment group EQT Partner is also a shareholder, although with a small participation.
Debut on the floor
The IPO, aimed exclusively at institutional investors, will be articulated through a Public Subscription Offer (OPS) and a Public Sale Offer (IPO) that would add a total value of up to 1,250 million euros.
Specifically, the capital increase is estimated between 700 and 750 million euroswhile the sale of securities could reach 500 million euros, depending on investor appetite. The funds obtained will be used to reduce debt and strengthen the company’s financial structure.
The company aims to start trading in the second week of February, before its latest audited annual accounts, closed on September 30, become obsolete.
In a couple of weeks, predictably, the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) will give the ‘green light’ to the prospectus and the ‘roadshow’ will begin, in which investors who want to participate in the transaction will request shares.
Along with Evercore as financial advisor, Morgan Stanley, Citi and Bank of America will be global coordinators. Banco Santander, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank and UBS work on the second tier and Alantra and BBVA work on the third tier.
The British market is consolidated as HBX’s main business focus in Europe, with a growth of 20% in 2024. Spain, the Netherlands and the Nordic countries complete the podium of the most relevant markets on the continent. At a global level, the United States has overtaken Spain as the company’s main market.
In its last fiscal year (September 2022 to September 2023) it distributed 46 million hotel beds, which represents a growth of 25% compared to 2022. This consolidates it as the largest bed bank in the world and the fourth largest supplier of hotel beds in Spain and around the world. according to the annual ranking prepared by the consulting firm SiteMinder.
Business diversification
Upon entering the market in 2025, HBX Group will present a diversified portfolio of B2B solutions for the tourism industry, consolidating its position as a comprehensive provider of services for the traveler.
This strategy, which goes beyond the traditional Hotelbeds bed bank, is embodied in four key brands: Hotelbedsfocused on hotels, tour operators, airlines and online travel agencies; Bedsonline, aimed at the travel retail segment; Roiback, specialized in technological solutions for independent and chain hotels; and TravelStack, which offers products and services to companies looking to enter the tourism sector.
This reorganization, which was formalized in October 2023 with the name change to HBX Group, seeks to simplify brand architecture and offer a clearer and more efficient experience to its partners in more than 190 global markets.
Diversification also extends to the service offering, which now includes car rental, transfers, excursions and experiences, with the aim of building a complete ecosystem for the traveler, a kind of ‘Amazon of travel’.
With its jump to the trading floor, HBX Group seeks consolidate its leadership position in the tourism technology market. The company is confident that its solid business model, its sustained growth and its commitment to innovation will attract the interest of investors and will allow it to continue promoting the digital transformation of the tourism sector.
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