SINGAPORE - Temasek's SingEx Holdings, which operates the Singapore Expo and the Max Atria, will merge with Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) events subsidiary Sphere Exhibits under an agreement by the two owners.
Singapore's investment company, Temasek, will own 60 per cent of the new SingEx-Sphere Holdings, while SPH, which publishes The Straits Times, will take the remaining 40 per cent. The agreed transaction value of 40 per cent of SingEx-Sphere is $24.4 million.
In the announcement on Monday (Feb 1), SingEx and Sphere Exhibits said that the new company aims to be a regional meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (Mice) market leader for hybrid events, with a combined portfolio of events management, venue and consultancy businesses.
SingEx chairman Robin Hu said that events and exhibitions remain the most robust marketing channels for businesses around the world today. The two companies, with their combined five decades of experience in organising and hosting both trade and consumer shows across sectors, have built a strong foundation for the Mice scene in Singapore and in the region.
"The ambition of the merged entity is to continue building on its firm foundation by adding to it additional intellectual properties in the form of new events and exhibitions via both organic curation and inorganic investments," added Mr Hu, who will be appointed chairman of the new entity.
Despite the challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic, both SingEx and Sphere Exhibits see tremendous potential in the Mice space, especially with Singapore remaining a dynamic business hub that connects companies globally.
SPH chief executive Ng Yat Chung said: "This merger will allow us to tap each other's expertise, resources and networks to seize new opportunities to enhance the portfolio and achieve growth regionally."
SingEx, which is wholly owned by Temasek, has a 40-year track record in event and venue experiences. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, the Singapore Expo welcomed more than six million visitors and held over 600 events annually.
It has shored up its hybrid capabilities over the past year, and has hosted the Industrial Transformation Asia-Pacific and the Singapore Fintech Festival x Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology events.
SingEx also managed the Covid-19 community care facility at Singapore Expo from April to December 2020.
Sphere Exhibits, which was incorporated in 2008, has expanded its footprint in the region over the years, holding consumer and trade events in countries such as China, Indonesia and the Philippines. The exhibitions it has hosted include Comex and the IT Show.
The transaction completion is subject to customary closing conditions.
