PARIS: Carrefour Group announced on Sunday it had agreed to sell 80 percent equity interest in Carrefour China to the leading Chinese retailer Suning.com for $698.8 million in cash.
[the_ad id=”31605″]The transaction, which will be paid in cash, values Carrefour China at an enterprise value of $1.59 billion. The transaction values 100 percent of Carrefour China at an equity value of 6 billion yuan ($873.5 million) .
The purchase price for the acquisition of 80 percent of Carrefour China shares is 4.8 billion yuan.
Carrefour Group will retain a 20 percent stake in the business and two seats out of seven on Carrefour China’s Supervisory Board.
With a presence in China dating back to 1995, Carrefour China operates a network of 210 hypermarkets and 24 convenience stores. In 2018, it generated net sales of 28.5 billion yuan.
Suning said the move will continue to expand its retail scenario and diversify its retail category and stimulate its competitiveness in fast-moving consumer goods. The Nanjing-based retailer said it will digitalize the existing Carrefour stores and integrate its online and offline shopping experience.
Suning.com operates a network of over 8,881 stores in more than 700 cities and runs the country’s 3rd largest business-to-consumer e-commerce platform.
Closing the transaction is subject to approval by Chinese competition authorities and other customary conditions, and is expected by the end of 2019.