BLS International acquires Dubai’s Citizenship Invest for $31Mn
NEW DELHI, INDIA — In a move to further reinforce its existing citizenship and residency programs, BLS International Services Ltd. announced that it would purchase advisory firm Citizenship Invest (CI) for $31 million, or approximately ₹260 crore.
The acquisition is pending required regulatory approvals and is expected to be completed by October 31, 2024, and funded by internal accruals.
Expansion of BLS services
Based in Dubai, Citizenship Invest is an investment firm established in 2009 and specializes in fast-track investor programs for residence and citizenship across more than 15 countries. They have helped more than 1,800 clients from over 85 nationalities, and they claim a success rate of 99% compared to an industry average of 80%.
Citizenship Invest reported audited revenues of $9.6 million (₹81 crore) and an EBITDA of $4.4 million (₹37 crore) for the calendar year 2023, with a strong EBITDA margin of 45%. Revenue growth stood at 28%, EBITDA growth at 43%, with a margin expansion of 470 bps versus CY22.
BLS International, which operates in over 66 countries, sees the acquisition as a key step to boost its presence in the growing market of visa-related services.
The company’s focus on citizenship programs aligns with global trends, as more countries outsource visa processing to private companies like BLS. Visa and consular services currently account for 81% of BLS’ total revenue.
Market impact and growth opportunities
“The company’s outstanding 99% application success rate, combined with its high revenue per application, aligns perfectly with our customer-centric philosophy,” said Shikhar Aggarwal, Joint Managing Director of BLS International.
“By integrating CI into our portfolio, we are enhancing our capabilities in offering long-term visa solutions and further solidifying our position as a comprehensive global provider of visa and consular services,” he added.
The news of the acquisition had a mixed effect on the stock market. While shares of BLS International dropped by over 3% in mid-day trade, shares of its subsidiary, BLS E-Services, surged by 7%.
The proposed acquisition is considered a major step towards furthering its capabilities in visa and consular services, as BLS International is betting on the growth in global air passenger traffic to 3.2 billion per year by 2030, which promises sizably sized growth opportunities.
