MinterEllison has acted for Helloworld Travel Limited (Helloworld) which has entered into agreements to acquire the Magellan Travel Group (Magellan) for $32.5 million.

ASX listed Helloworld is Australia's largest retail franchise travel business and currently employs over 2,000 staff globally.

Helloworld's integrated travel offering includes retail, wholesale, corporate and tour businesses in Australia, New Zealand, Asia and around the world.

The transaction, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, consolidates Helloworld's strong position in Australia's retail and corporate travel agency business.

The acquisition was funded by a mixture of 65% cash and 35% in Helloworld shares, with the cash component funded from existing facilities.

“We are thrilled to help grow Helloworld's network around Australia”

Bart Oude-Vrielink

"This acquisition will grow the Helloworld Travel network to over 1,800 retail and corporate agencies – providing members an extensive base to leverage going forward."

The transaction is expected to be completed in January 2018.

The MinterEllison team was led by Bart Oude-Vrielink (Partner) and Kate Koidl (Senior Associate) with assistance from Olivia Gong (Paralegal). Specialist input has been provided by Geoff Carter (Partner) and Tom Faulls (Associate) in relation to regulatory matters, Elissa Romanin (Partner) in relation to Tax, Nicole Reid (Special Counsel) in relation to intellectual property and Karl Blake (Partner) from an industrial relations perspective.