[Edaily Reporter LEE SEON-WOO ] Informa, the world’s largest exhibition and convention company, is acquiring global exhibition firm Clarion Events. The acquisition is a massive deal worth 2.24 billion pounds (approximately 4.3 trillion won).
Informa recently announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Clarion Events from global private equity firm Blackstone. This marks another major merger and acquisition (M&A) for Informa since its 2018 acquisition of global exhibition company UBM for 4.19 billion pounds. The acquisition process is expected to be finalized by the end of the year, following regulatory approvals, including a merger review by the relevant authorities

Founded in 1947, Clarion Events is a global exhibition and event specialist headquartered in London, England. With offices in 12 countries worldwide, it operates over 100 global exhibition brands, including the “International Consumer Electronics Fair” (IFA) in Berlin, Germany; the “International Computer Entertainment Expo” (ICE) in Barcelona, Spain; and the “Defense Show” (DSEI) in the UK.
Informa expects that the acquisition of Clarion Events will push its annual revenue in the B2B (business-to-business) trade show and event sector to exceed 4.2 billion pounds (approximately 8 trillion won). Once the acquisition process is finalized, the company will own more than 1,000 trade show and event brands across some 30 countries worldwide.
Infoma plans to use the acquisition of Clarion Events as an opportunity to expand its business footprint in the North American and Asian markets and strengthen its position in the European market. The company intends to broaden its business scope into the electronics, defense and security, and gaming sectors while fostering synergies with its existing technology and energy exhibition businesses. It also plans to expand data and digital services linked to its exhibition business while restructuring its business model to focus on B2B exhibitions and events.