Lenders are organizing a loan package worth approximately €1 billion ($1 billion) to finance the sale of Axel Springer SE’s real estate ads unit, Aviv Group. KKR Capital Markets and Deutsche Bank AG are spearheading the loan process, sources familiar with the matter disclosed. This financing is part of a broader plan by KKR & Co., the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), and German billionaire Mathias Döpfner to restructure the media conglomerate Axel Springer.
The loan is currently being presented to a select group of investors, with a wider syndication set to follow shortly, according to insiders who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to the private nature of the deal.
Pre-marketing loans has become a standard practice in the leveraged loan market, helping lenders gauge investor interest and generate initial orders. Given the competitive nature of new-money deals amid a quiet period for mergers and acquisitions, sponsors typically target trusted investors, often referred to in industry jargon as “friends and family.”
Representatives from CPPIB and Deutsche Bank declined to comment, while spokespeople for KKR and Axel Springer did not immediately respond to inquiries.
A Key Piece of a Larger Financing Strategy
This loan is part of a €4 billion debt package designed to fund the overall restructuring of Axel Springer. One segment of this financing has already been completed, with a €1.95 billion leveraged loan closed in December to support jobs platform The Stepstone Group. This euro- and dollar-denominated term loan B refinanced existing Axel Springer debt while adding liquidity to the company’s balance sheet.
The remainder of the financing is expected to be raised from private credit firms. The overall restructuring of Axel Springer values the entire company at €13.5 billion, with over €10 billion attributed to the classifieds business.
Under the new structure, Axel Springer will retain its media assets, including Politico and Business Insider, while its four classified ad websites—Stepstone and Aviv among them—will be spun off into separate joint ventures, where KKR and CPPIB will hold majority stakes.
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