Transaction will further strengthen Wolters Kluwer's leadership position in the European legal information solutions market
July 22, 2014 - Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory today announced it has signed an agreement to acquire the LexisNexis legal business in Poland from Reed Elsevier. The acquisition will extend Wolters Kluwer's portfolio of high-quality digital information offerings for the Polish law firm, government, and corporate segments.
Simultaneously, Wolters Kluwer also announced that it has signed an agreement to divest its Canadian legal publishing activities to Reed Elsevier. The Canadian legal assets to be sold include print and online information products for law firms, corporate counsel, and human resources professionals, of which a portion are French Canadian legal products consolidated within our Tax & Accounting results.
Wolters Kluwer expects the acquisition to generate a return above our cost of capital within three to five years.
"We are pleased to have reached this agreement with LexisNexis. The transaction supports the Legal & Regulatory Division's strategy to concentrate investment on our core markets where opportunities for long-term growth are the greatest," said Legal & Regulatory Division CEO Stacey Caywood.
The LexisNexis legal business in Poland has approximately 120 employees, and the Wolters Kluwer legal business in Canada has approximately 50 employees.
About Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory
Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory is a division of Wolters Kluwer, serving customers around the world with expert content, solutions, software, and services in the areas of law, business, and regulatory compliance. Customers of Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory include law firms, corporate law departments, business compliance professionals, corporate legal counsel, legal educators, universities, libraries, and government agencies. Wolters Kluwer had 2013 annual revenues of €3.6 billion ($4.7 billion), employs approximately 19,000 people worldwide, and maintains operations in over 40 countries across Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. Wolters Kluwer is headquartered in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands. Its shares are quoted on Euronext Amsterdam (WKL) and are included in the AEX and Euronext 100 indices. Wolters Kluwer has a sponsored Level 1 American Depositary Receipt program. The ADRs are traded on the over-the-counter market in the U.S. (WTKWY).
About Reed Elsevier
Reed Elsevier Group plc is a world leading provider of professional information solutions. The group employs approximately 28,000 people of whom half are in North America. Reed Elsevier Group PLC is owned equally by two parent companies, Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV; the combined market capitalization of the two parent companies is approximately £19bn/€23bn. Its shares are traded on the London, Amsterdam and New York Stock Exchanges using the following ticker symbols: London: REL; Amsterdam: REN; New York: RUK and ENL.
| Media Leslie Bonacum t + 1 847 267 7153 leslie.bonacum@wolterskluwer.com | Investors/Analysts Meg Geldens t + 31 (0)172 641 407 ir@wolterskluwer.com |
Forward-looking Statements
This report contains forward-looking statements. These statements may be identified by words such as "expect", "should", "could", "shall" and similar expressions. Wolters Kluwer cautions that such forward-looking statements are qualified by certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from what is contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Factors which could cause actual results to differ from these forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, general economic conditions; conditions in the markets in which Wolters Kluwer is engaged; behavior of customers, suppliers, and competitors; technological developments; the implementation and execution of new ICT systems or outsourcing; and legal, tax, and regulatory rules affecting Wolters Kluwer's businesses, as well as risks related to mergers, acquisitions, and divestments. In addition, financial risks such as currency movements, interest rate fluctuations, liquidity, and credit risks could influence future results. The foregoing list of factors should not be construed as exhaustive. Wolters Kluwer disclaims any intention or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
