In his latest dealmakers column for Exhibition News Steve Monnington of Mayfield Merger Strategies says organisers in Russian markets are already seeing the impact of the impact of the humanitarian crisis on share prices.
Two weeks in (at the time of writing), the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing humanitarian crisis gets grimmer by the day. The effects on business is felt by those organisers that run shows in those markets. Given that Hyve had thriving businesses in both Russia and Ukraine, their share price drop has been significant but they have reinforced their omnichannel strategy with the acquisition of US organiser Fintech Meetup. The business was launched in early 2021 by Anil Aggarwal who has a history of creating and selling technology events – Money 20/20 sold to Ascential and ShopTalk, Groceryshop and Retail Meetup were all previously acquired by Hyve.
The 2nd edition of Fintech Meetup which opens on 22 March was originally planned as a physical event following the virtual event launch last year. However, following feedback from the community and, against the trend of the exhibition formats of most organisers following the relaxing of Covid-19 policies in the western world, it will continue as a purely virtual event. The business is very early stage – 2021 revenue of US$1.3m and a loss of US $3.8m – but growth expectations are extremely high, as evidenced by the deal structure of US$5m paid now and an earnout of up to US$50m…
