AkzoNobel sold its Pakistan paints unit to Packages Group at 14x EBITDA

What was changed

AkzoNobel completed the sale of Akzo Nobel Pakistan Limited to IGI Investments (Pvt.) Limited, part of Pakistan's Packages Group, on 30 September 2026. The deal, announced in April, valued the business at an enterprise value of roughly €50 million (PKR 16.2 billion), a 14x enterprise-value-to-EBITDA multiple.

The divested business covers AkzoNobel's Decorative Paints and liquid Coatings operations in Pakistan. Pakistan's Competition Commission had cleared the deal in a Phase I review in August, finding no horizontal overlap or vertical relationship between the parties in the relevant coatings markets.

CEO Greg Poux-Guillaume called the closing another important milestone in the ongoing strategic portfolio review, which is centred on AkzoNobel's Decorative Paints positions in Southeast Asia. It follows the completed sale of Akzo Nobel India Limited in December 2025. Packages Group CEO Syed Hyder Ali said the immediate focus would be continuity for employees, customers, distributors and partners.

Why it worked

Pakistan sat outside the refocused portfolio AkzoNobel is building around its stronger Decorative Paints positions in Southeast Asia.

A 14x EV/EBITDA multiple is a full price for a regional paints business, making the exit easy to justify to shareholders.

The Phase I clearance with no found overlaps removed regulatory risk on a modest but symbolically loaded deal.

Selling to an established local industrial group (Packages) offered continuity for the business rather than a liquidation.

What can be applied

Run a portfolio review as a sequence, not a one-off: each clean exit at a healthy multiple makes the next one easier to price and to clear.

Aftermath

Ownership transferred at closing on 30 September 2026, with Packages Group prioritising continuity for employees, customers, distributors and partners. AkzoNobel says its portfolio review is ongoing; the India sale had already completed in December 2025.