Savills' $1.1bn Acquisition of Eastdil Secured
- Apr 15
- 5 min read
By Julianna Zelnhefer, Alex Svanidze, Ryan Leo, and Ava Singer (Boston University); Anastasia Malikova, Dennis Malaj, Gauri Khanna (LSE)
Photo: Jason Dent (Unsplash)
Overview of the deal
Acquirer: Savills plc
Target: Eastdil Secured LLC
Implied Equity Value: $921.25 million (USD) (60% cash/40% stock)
Total Transaction Size: $1,112.5 million (USD)
Closed date: Q2-Q3 2026, subject to regulatory clearances
Target advisor: BDT & MSD Partners (financial), Latham & Watkins LLP (legal)
Acquirer advisor: Lazard (lead financial), Deutsche Numis (financial), and UBS (financial), Hogan Lovells (legal), CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang (legal)
On March 12, 2026, London-based real estate advisory firm Savills plc announced its agreement to acquire Eastdil Secured Holdings LLC, a leader in global real estate investment banking, headquartered in New York. The transaction is the largest in Savills’ history and the most significant brokerage consolidation since JLL’s acquisition of HFF in 2019. Savills had strong market positions across Europe and Asia-Pacific but only a leasing advisory footprint in the US. Thus, this deal positions Savills to expand in the US and achieve its long-term strategy of building a fully integrated global real estate advisory platform, capable of competing with industry giants such as CBRE, JLL, and Cushman & Wakefield.
The acquisition directly addresses Savills’ limited presence in US capital markets, which is a crucial gap in its global footprint. With Eastdil’s integration, Savills immediately becomes the leading adviser for prime commercial real estate transactions in the United States and ranks second globally for deals exceeding $100 million. The two firms’ operations are highly complementary, with minimal overlap across services, clients, and geographies. This creates significant opportunities for cross-selling and synergy realisation. Management is targeting approximately £60 million in annual revenue synergies, underpinned by Eastdil’s 18% EBITDA margin, nearly triple Savills’ current level. The transaction is expected to be accretive, delivering low-to mid-teens EPS accretion by 2027.
Company Details (Acquirer - Savills PLC)
Savills is a global real estate services firm listed on the LSE and headquartered in London. The firm provides services in residential and commercial transaction advisory (38% of FY25 revenue), property & facilities management (37%), consultancy (21%), and investment management (4%). They have >300 offices in over 70 countries, with EMEA representing 59% of FY25 group revenue (£2.55 billion), Asia-Pacific 28%, and North America only 13%.
Founded in 1855, headquartered in London, United Kingdom
CEO: Simon Shaw
Number of employees: 42,000
Market Cap: $1.642 billion (USD)
EV: $1.9 billion (USD)
FY25 Revenue: $3.46 billion
FY25 EBITDA: $212 million
Company Details (Target - Eastdil Secured Holdings, LLC)
Eastdil Secured is a global real estate investment bank specializing in mergers and acquisitions, debt placements, and other transactions. The firm is recognized as one of the leading advisors in commercial real estate capital markets, and since 2011, Eastdil Secured has advised on more than 9,800 real estate transactions worth approximately $3 trillion, establishing itself as the top adviser for commercial real estate transactions over $100 million in the United States.
Founded in 1967, headquartered in New York, New York, Santa Monica, California, and London, England (Tri-Headquarters Model)
CEO: D. Michael Van Konynenburg
Number of employees: 650
Market Cap: N/A
EV: $1.1 billion
LTM Revenue: $633 million
LTM EBITDA: $113 million (US GAAP)
LTM EV/Revenue: 1.76x
LTM EV/EBITDA: 9.9x
Projections and Assumptions
Short-term Consequences
The acquisition will improve Savills' competitive positioning as the combined group will become the second-largest advisory firm globally for prime commercial real estate transactions above $100 million and the number one adviser in the United States. This addresses what CEO Simon Shaw described as the most significant gap in Savills' global platform, with North America previously accounting for just 13% of group revenue. Post-deal, this will rise to 23%, and transactional revenues will increase from 38% to 48% of the group's total.
To ensure operational continuity, Eastdil will continue its existing business model as Savills’ real estate investment bank, maintaining its headquarters in New York, Santa Monica and London. A leadership change sees Roy March move from CEO to Executive Chairman, with D. Michael Van Konynenburg stepping up as CEO and James McCaffrey becoming President. Both Van Konynenburg and McCaffrey join the Savills’ Group Executive Board, and 85 senior Eastdil employees will become Savills’ shareholders at completion, aligning incentives across the group.
However, the acquisition adds debt to the balance sheet. The cash component is funded through a bridge facility of up to $800 million at an all-in cost of approximately 5.5% to 6%. The market reacted cautiously due to concerns around financing risk and exposure to weaker markets such as China and continental Europe, with Savills’ shares falling 7.2% on announcement day.
Long-Term Upsides
The acquisition comes with many long-term upsides. The transaction is expected to be accretive, with low-to-mid teens EPS growth by 2027. Higher margin advisory revenues should improve overall profitability and margins over time. The deal provides strong cash generation that will reduce Savills’ leverage over time, supporting long-term financial stability.
The real estate capital market is expected to benefit from strong structural tailwinds: large volumes of maturing real estate debt are expected to drive refinancing demand, closed-ended funds approaching the end of their investment horizons will increase transaction activity, and growing investment in digital infrastructure presents a significant and growing opportunity. The acquisition establishes Savills as a top global advisor and shifts its revenue mix towards recurring advisory income, though the business is still heavily transaction-driven.
Revenue synergies for this deal are both credible and strategic. The synergies are expected to be at least £60M in revenue synergies and £15M in EBITDA annually. This is driven by cross-selling services across geographies as well as leveraging the combined client base and platform scale. The full run rate is expected by 2029, with 70% realised by as early as 2028. However, several risks to consider include integration challenges, dependence on key employees staying, and the cyclicality of transaction-driven revenues.
Risks and Uncertainties
Closing risk is a primary concern, with completion targeted for Q2 or Q3 2026 pending regulatory approval. These additional costs and delays can reduce the value gained from the acquisition. Savills also warns that expected returns might fail to fully materialize in full, in part, or with delays. Some of the potential concerns for the failure to realise returns could include negative changes in the macroeconomic climate or a slowdown in the global trade environment. As Eastdil Secured clients are in the real estate and private equity industries, these events could highly impact them. The result is a slowdown of transaction flow, adversely impacting company revenues.
Savills also points out a concern with Eastdil Secured team talent retention due to the client relationship-driven nature of investment banking business models. While key members are not expected to leave, some could decide not to continue in their roles. Loss of talent could lead to client churn. Savills reinforces that it has developed multiple measures to deter this risk. These mitigation strategies attempt to align management incentives with value creation for the company.
“As part of Savills, Eastdil Secured will continue to serve as a trusted advisor and provide clients with unmatched capital markets and commercial real estate expertise, now with more resources as part of a larger organisation with complementary geographic reach and advisory capabilities.” - Roy H. March, Executive Chairman of Eastdil Secured