Allen & Overy is advising the Nasmyth family on its exit from Argus Media, the global energy and commodity price reporting agency it founded in the 1970s.

The Nasmyth family’s exit makes way for a new strategic partnership to be formed between Argus Media, which is valued at close to GBP1 billion, and leading global growth equity firm General Atlantic.

The transaction signifies a new era of growth for the company, which is one of the largest commodities price reporting agencies globally with 750 full-time staff in 21 offices worldwide.

Andrew Ballheimer, managing partner and lead on this transaction, comments: “Today marks a significant milestone for the Nasmyth Family, which has been involved in Argus Media for 46 years since it was founded as a weekly newsletter by James Ashley Nasmyth in the seventies.”

“The long-term success of Argus Media is testament to the vision of its founders and senior leadership team who saw, well ahead of other media companies, the commercial value of a hybrid model offering high-value data and reporting, as well as editorial.”

The Allen & Overy team is being led by managing partner Andrew Ballheimer with assistance from Corporate partners George Knighton, Sara Pickersgill and associate Michael Snook.

The transaction is expected to close within two months, subject to regulatory approval.

The deal adds to the significant number of transactions the Allen & Overy TMT practice has acted on, including advising:

• Facebook on the acquisition of Masquerade Technologies, a Belarusian start-up providing imaging technology for video
• WPP on its recommended joint takeover offer of Chime Communications
• Exponent Private Equity on its simultaneous acquisitions of Wowcher from the Daily Mail and General Trust and the UK and Irish operating companies of the LivingSocial business from LivingSocial, Inc.
• 21st Century Fox on its joint venture with Apollo to combine Endemol, Shine and CORE Media to create a global TV production company
• Activision Blizzard on its USD5.9bn acquisition of King Digital Entertainment, the group behind Candy Crush Saga mobile games
• MTGx on the acquisition of a 51% stake in Zoomin.TV, one of the world’s largest multi-channel networks (MCNs)