CB Richard Ellis to Buy Insignia

CB Richard Ellis, Los Angeles, has announced an agreement to acquire New York-based Insignia Financial Group Inc. for $11 per share of common stock in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $415 million.The valuation includes repayment of net debt and redemption of preferred stock, and there may be an "incremental consideration" in addition to the $11 per share, CB Richard Ellis said. The additional consideration would depend on whether Insignia can sell certain real estate assets for more than $45 million prior to closing the deal. CB Richard Ellis said it would receive a cash contribution of $145 million from Blum Capital Partners, and that it has received a commitment from Credit Suisse First Boston for the necessary debt financing. The combined company, which would operate globally as CB Richard Ellis, would be a real estate services company with revenues exceeding $1.8 billion and 16,000 employees in 47 countries, CB Richard Ellis said. The companies can be found online at http://www.cbre.com and http://www.insigniafinancial.com.