TPG Capital Completes Cassidy Turley Acquisition

WASHINGTON, DC—Cassidy Turley is now officially part of the private equity investment consortium backed by TPG Capital, PAG Asia Capital and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan -- the previously-announced acquisition in September has now closed.

The deal is significant for several reasons, starting with the powerhouse the consortium has assembled; not only has it acquired Cassidy Turley but DTZ as well in its own November 2014 blockbuster transaction of $1.25 billion. Specifically, as part of the transaction, Cassidy Turley has sold its equity interests to an affiliate of DTZ Investment Holdings.

The unified company represents $2.9 billion in annual revenues and more than 28,000 employees. It also manages 3.3 billion square feet globally on behalf of institutional, government, corporate and private clients.

As announced previously, Tod Lickerman will be the Global CEO of the integrated company. Joseph Stettinius Jr., Cassidy Turley's CEO, is now Chief Executive of the Americas, while Brett White, former CEO of CBRE Group, who also invested in the acquisition, will become full-time Executive Chairman in March 2015.

The deal is also emblematic of a larger trend in the industry, namely consolidation. Over the past year Savills PLC has acquired Studley for $260 million cash. Avison Young, as another example, has been steadily picking up companies in the US to expand its footprint.

Last month BGC Partners acquired multifamily broker network Apartment Realty Advisors for $110 million in cash. Also, it appears that Cushman & Wakefield is about to acquire investment sales brokerage Massey Knakal Realty Services for $100 million.