The online investigative media revealed Monday evening that the company had refused to pay the digital services tax (nicknamed “Gafa tax”) since its introduction in 2019, contesting, including in court, being eligible for it.
Contacted on Tuesday by AFP, the company’s communication in France indicated not to comment and referred to explanations dating from the end of November 2022 and published in the financial documentation of the group listed on the Norwegian stock exchange.
Adevinta indicated that it had been notified by the French tax authorities that most of its income in France, its main market, would be subject to the tax which targets the giants of the sector, mainly American.
Adevinta said he had appealed, but specified that the outcome of the procedure was “uncertain”, adding that he had therefore “provisioned 39 million euros for September 30, 2022” to cover any eventuality.
Adevinta operates platforms in 11 countries and has more than 25 brands: in addition to Leboncoin in France, mobile.de and eBay Kleinanzeigen in Germany, Marktplaats in the Netherlands, fotocasa and InfoJobs in Spain. In 2022, the group lost 1.75 billion euros, due to a depreciation of 1.7 billion euros made in the fourth quarter relating to assets purchased from eBay in 2021.
At the end of September, a consortium led by the American funds Blackstone and British funds Permira submitted a non-binding offer for its takeover. Adevinta then reacted by indicating that “discussions are at an early stage and there can be no certainty that a final offer will be submitted”.
