Airtasker buys Oneflare for $9.8 million – 1 / 4 of its former valuation

ASX-listed gig economic system market Airtasker is buying providers platform Oneflare for $9.8 million.

The corporate (ASX:ART) will assist pay for the acquisition by elevating $6.25 million through an underwritten placement of roughly 14.5 million new totally paid strange shares at $0.43 cents. Airtasker shares have been positioned in a buying and selling halt at $0.51 cents.

Oneflare is Australia’s third largest native providers platform, serving greater than 540,000 clients and 14,500 verified companies yearly. It has a powerful presence in trades, dwelling enchancment {and professional} providers. Airtasker stated the acquisition will speed up its strategic enlargement into the excessive worth service classes Oneflare targeted on. The common job value on Oneflare is $2,300+.

The deal seems like a discount for Airtasker after on-line actual property web site Domain (then part of Fairfax) bought into the startup in 2016, paying $15 million for a 35% stake that valued the enterprise at $43 million.

Airtasker is paying for the acquisition with $2.25 million in money, plus $7.55 million in its shares, at $0.43 cents, with 50% escrowed for 12 months, and the opposite half escrowed for twenty-four months. The deal represents 1.6x of FY23 income of higher than $6 million.

Airtasker co-founder and CEO, Tim Fung, stated the merger strengthens community results for each firms.

“I’m tremendous stoked to deliver collectively Airtasker and Oneflare to create Australia’s no. 1 market for native providers. Collectively, we are able to provide our clients entry to a fair higher vary of native providers and quicker response occasions while creating extra job alternatives than ever earlier than,” he stated.

“By buying Oneflare, we additionally speed up a push into larger worth service classes together with trades, dwelling enchancment {and professional} providers to ship on our mission: to empower individuals to understand the complete worth of their abilities.” 

The Shares to be issued underneath the Placement symbolize round 3.5% of Airtasker’s pre-offer issued share capital, and the whole Shares to be issued underneath the Placement and Acquisition symbolize 7.7% of Airtasker’s pre-offer issued share capital.

Firm administrators James Spenceley, Peter Hammond and Xioafan (Fred) Bai, or their associates, who’re present shareholders, will subscribe for $3.55 million within the Placement, topic to shareholder approval at a gathering in late June, with a Share Buy Plan (SPP) elevating as much as $1.2 million, with a most entitlement of as much as $10,000. If totally subscribed, the SPP represents roughly 0.7% of Airtasker’s pre-offer issued share capital. 

The Placement is totally underwritten by Morgans Company Ltd. 

Oneflare launched as a web based market in 2011, buying a number of different firms, together with City You and Phrase of Mouth On-line, in subsequent years.

It raised $3 million in mid 2015 amid talk of plans to IPO the next 12 months. In 2016, Domain paid $15 million for a 35% stake.

Whereas the acquisition seems like good worth for Airtasker, paying lower than 1 / 4 of Oneflare’s 2016 valuation, the ASX-listed firm has seen its share value fall round 59% over the previous 12 months.