Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India, leader in vacation ownership space in India focusing on quality family holidays, today signed definitive agreements with the shareholders of Holiday Club Resorts Oy, Finland to initially acquire18.8% of its shares with a right to increase its ownership over a period of two years. This initial acquisition will be completed in a month's time subject to required regulatory approval.

The proposed acquisition will enable Mahindra Holidays to make significant inroads into the European markets and to leverage Holiday Club's expertise in the vacation ownership model, as well as its strong technology platform and talent pool. Once full ownership is achieved, the combined entity has the potential to become the largest vacation ownership company in the world, outside the United States.

Commenting on the acquisition, Anand Mahindra, chairman, Mahindra Group, said, “The acquisition of Holiday Club Resorts will elevate Mahindra Holidays to a global leader in the vacation ownership industry. This timely acquisition not only provides access to European assets, technology and processes, but more importantly, provides a springboard to Mahindra Holidays for growth in Europe and other international destinations.”

Commenting on the deal, Arun Nanda, chairman, Mahindra Holidays, said, ''This acquisition is part of a larger vision to widen our international footprint. We are excited at the prospect of expanding in Europe and the Middle East along with Holiday Club. We like the company for the quality of its management team, its emphasis on innovation and its expertise in design and speedy construction of cost efficient resorts. We are confident that synergies from this acquisition will fuel and propel our future growth.''

Shares of the company gained Rs 9.50, or 2.97%, to settle at Rs 329.25. The total volume of shares traded was 93,669 at the BSE (Monday).