A
fund backed by private equity group Permira has joined with the
management team of satellite operator Asia Broadcast Satellite to buyout
majority control from Citigroup Venture Capital International
Proprietary Investment Partnership L.P. and Citigroup Venture Capital
International Co-Investment, L.P. No terms of the deal were disclosed
but Reuters is citing anonymous sources saying Permira's investment
totaled around $200 million.
This is Permira's third major
investment in satellite sector, having already seen hefty returns from a
2003 investment in Inmarsat and a 2005 investment in Intelsat.
"ABS
is one of the world's fastest growing satellite operators, with prime
orbital locations serving markets with strong fundamentals," noted
Richard Sanders, head of TMT at Permira in a prepared statement.
Founded
by CEO Thomas Choi in 2006, ABS supplies bandwidth connectivity to
broadcasting and telecoms, serving over 80 customers in 30 countries.
ABC currently operates three satellites under the ABS brand and
co-brands a fourth bird. ABS has two others in the pipeline and its
prime orbital positions cover over 80% of the world's population.
