GoCompare to spend £36.5m on MyVoucherCodes

The price comparison service expands its interests through the purchase of the retail voucher firm's parent company.

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Image: GoCompare is probably best known for its brand character Gio Compario - the Welsh tenor Wynne Evans
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GoCompare.com has announced a £36.5m deal to buy the owner of MyVoucherCodes.

The price comparison website operator said it would fund the purchase of The Global Voucher Group from Monitise through existing cash and by extending its credit facilities.

MyVoucherCodes.co.uk has eight million e-mail subscribers and about 45 million annual visitors on its website.

Its business model involves working with many big-name retailers to advertise discounts.

GoCompare said the MyVoucherCodes' retail business would be "highly complementary" to its financial services and utilities comparison services.

It added that it was targeting about 100 million website visits every year in the combined business.

Shares - 45% higher in the year to date - closed 4% higher on Tuesday.

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The GoCompare chief executive, Matthew Crummack, said: "We are delighted with this acquisition which will complement the services offered by GoCompare.

"We are making strong progress towards our ambition to become the 'go-to' place for savvy savers to find great deals, and for service providers to reach and acquire customers.

"I am looking forward to MyVoucherCodes playing a valuable role within the group and providing us with the potential to help even more people, more often."

GoCompare, which rejected a £460m takeover approach by rival ZPG just a month ago, updated investors on its forecasts while announcing the acquisition.

It said it expected full-year revenue to rise 5% to £149m with adjusted operating profit at the upper end of current market expectations - currently around £35m.