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Blackstone has teamed up with the Italian billionaire Benetton family to bid for infrastructure group Atlantia in what would be Europe's largest take-private deal on record.

The deal would value the company's equity at €19 billion (approximately $20.5 billion). The PE giant has offered €23 per share, alongside Benetton holding company Edizione, which already owns a third of Atlantia. Under the terms of the deal, Edizione would own 65% upon completion with Blackstone holding the remaining 35% stake. 

Adding its €35.3 billion of net debt as of Dec. 31, the offer gives Atlantia an enterprise value of over €54 billion. 

If completed, the deal would be the largest public-to-private transaction for a European listed company, according to PitchBook data. Currently, KKR's £11 billion (around $14.3 billion) takeover of pharmacy chain Alliance Boots in 2007 tops the list. 

European take-private activity reached record levels last year both in terms of deal count and value, with 45 transactions closed worth an aggregate $52.9 billion, PitchBook data shows. The trend could continue this year, as European stock markets have been negatively impacted by soaring energy prices and geopolitical volatility—factors that could make public markets a good hunting ground for PE firms.   
"Take-privates will be a standout theme in 2022. Pricing is favorable, dry powder sits at record levels, and the heightened risk of a European recession means further volatility is on the horizon," PitchBook EMEA senior analyst Dominick Mondesir said. "More public companies will seek to de-list to avoid the quarterly reporting pressures and analyst scrutiny of the public markets as the sell-off intensifies."

Blackstone and Edizione will pay around €12.7 billion, of which €8.2 billion is debt, for the remaining two-thirds of Atlantia. Based in Rome, Atlantia manages five airports and nearly 6,000 miles of toll motorway across the globe. 

Featured image by NurPhoto/Getty Images

This article originally appeared on PitchBook News