Trio of banks share £20m in fees for Merlin takeover deal

Goldman Sachs, Barclays and Citi are set to share fees of around £20 million for advising Merlin Entertainments on its £6 billion sale to Blackstone and the Lego family, unveiled on Friday.

Lazard, which advised Blackstone, could get £5 million for work on an uncontested bid.

Blackstone’s deal sees it return to Merlin after just six years.

The US private equity house bought Merlin in 2005 for £102 million, expanding it fast and floating it on the London Stock Exchange in 2013 at a value of £3 billion.

Merlin, which owns Madame Tussauds, the London Dungeon, left, the London Eye and Alton Towers, has been frustrated by the stock market’s lack of enthusiasm for the shares lately.

Blackstone and Canadian pension fund CPPIB take a 50% stake in the business, while Kirkbi, the investment company of Lego’s Kirk Kristiansen family, will own the other 50%.

The deal is at 455p a share compared with a closing price last night of 395p.