Private equity fund (PEF) STIC Investments is set to become the new owner of the laundry franchise Cleantopia.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 16th, STIC Investments on this day signed a stock purchase agreement (SPA) to acquire the management-control equity in Cleantopia held by PEF manager JKL Partners.
The acquisition target is 100% of Cleantopia equity that JKL Partners holds through Casablanca LLC, with the sale price set at around 630 billion won.
STIC Investments was earlier selected in August as the preferred bidder to acquire Cleantopia. A global PEF manager was initially seen as a key contender, but STIC Investments gained the upper hand.
Cleantopia is considered Korea's largest laundry franchise operator, with more than 3,200 franchises nationwide. Last year it posted sales of 279.7 billion won and operating profit of 31.1 billion won.
STIC Investments was said to have given high marks to Cleantopia for expanding its business scope across household services, including laundry pickup and delivery and move-out cleaning.
With the sale of Cleantopia to STIC Investments, JKL Partners will be able to recoup more than three times its invested principal. It previously acquired Cleantopia in 2021 for about 190 billion won.
Meanwhile, the transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of next year after merger filing and approval and payment of the acquisition price. Korea Investment & Securities, Woori Bank, and Shinhan Bank will serve as arrangers of the acquisition financing.