D&B Pays $205m for Dun & Bradstreet Australia

Credit and purchasing information giant D&B has acquired Dun & Bradstreet Australia Holdings for $205m in cash, from investment firm Lazard Carnegie Wylie Private Equity.

D&B Australasia was bought out by its senior management in 2001, and D&B Australia & New Zealand underwent a secondary buyout in 2007. Today's deal brings it back into ownership of the global firm D&B.

D&B Australia owns and operates a consumer credit service, through which it collects data on most businesses in Australia and New Zealand. For its fiscal year ended June 30, 2010, the operation generated approximately $80m of revenue and reported operating margins of approximately 20%.

Through the acquisition, D&B Australia's services will be added to D&B's global commercial database which contains more than 168 million business records.

'The acquisition of D&B Australia represents a strong fit with our international strategy and allows D&B to participate directly in a geographic region that has increasing importance for our global customers,' states D&B's Chairman and CEO Sara Mathew. 'D&B Australia has tripled in size over the last decade and we expect continued growth in the years ahead.'

Web site: www.dnb.com .