Deutsche Telekom AG is close to an agreement to sell its 70% stake in Scout24 Holding to American private equity firm Hellman & Friedman LLC, Bloomberg sources said.
Scout24 is a digital-classifieds business based in Munich. It operates various online marketplaces in several industries, including real estate, automotive and travel, the report said. Scout24 currently has 14 million monthly users and operates in 22 countries.
The deal would value the business at around EUR2 billion (USD2.7 billion) including debt. Deutsche Telekom is expected to make an announcement about the deal this week, Bloomberg said.
Other bidders for Scout24 included Stockholm-based EQT Partners AB and American private equity firm Silver Lake Management LLC. Germany's biggest newspaper publisher, Axel Springer AG, said in September that it had aborted its plan to bid for Scout24, the report said.
European phone companies were reportedly offloading their Internet and content businesses as they try to raise funds for building high-speed mobile networks.
Recently, Telekom Italia has put up for sale its TI Media Broadcasting business, while Spain's Telefonica SA divested its interest in online travel agency Rumbo last year, said Bloomberg.
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