Lastminute.com gets investor green light for £59m deal

Lastminute.com shareholders have approved the company's £58.9m takeover of France's largest online travel agency, Dégriftour.

The combined company will have a total turnover of £64.1m and an estimated gross profit of £10.3m. Dégriftour has an estimated customer base of 250,000. Lastminute.com will pay £27.1m in cash, of which £5.9m is payable after one year, as well as 19.7 million shares in lastminute.com. Brent Hoberman, CEO of lastminute.com claimed the deal achieved the type of presence in the French market that would have taken two to three years to build up from scratch. He also said it would increase gross profit by nine times. According to figures from Jupiter research, Degriftour has a 50 per cent share of the French online travel market and carries a 45 per cent brand awareness with French citizens. In related news, lastminute.com has signed an agreement with American Express to offer exclusive last minute deals to Amex card holders. Martha Lane-Fox, COO of lastminute.com, said cardholders would be able to access the offers through a separate site aimed at high spending Amex customers.