EuropeFinance and Insurance

Saverys looks set to start squeeze-out of remaining CMB shares

The voluntary public takeover of Belgium’s CMB by Marc Saverys’ company Saverco is approaching its final stages, and the ‘squeeze-out’ period to acquire the remaining shares looks set to begin in early December.

Some 1,668,043 shares (4.77% of CMB’s issued shares) were tendered on November 25 during the acceptance period of Saverco’s reopened public takeover bid, with payment due on December 1, a statement said today.

Once the acquisition of these shares is concluded, Saverco and its associates will own a 95.77% (33,520,326 shares) stake in CMB. A ‘simplified squeeze-out’ period to acquire the remaining shares will commence from December 1 until December 21, with payment scheduled for December 18.

Saverco and its affiliates have offered a bid price of €16.20 per share during the buyout, which has so far increased their combined stake in CMB from 50.80% (17,781,092 shares), as it stood in late October.

Saverco’s bid for the remaining 4.23% of CMB will be unconditional during the simplified squeeze-out. Any shares not sold by December 21 will be transferred legally to Saverco, which will make payment to the Deposit and Consignation Office of the Brussels Euronext exchange.

CMB will automatically be delisted from the stock exchange once the squeeze-out has been completed, which is part of Saverys’ plan to take the company back into private ownership.

“Through the privatisation of the company, CMB will be able to compete in a more efficient way with competitors from Asia and the United States by focusing on the consolidation and specialisation of the shipping segments in which the company is active. The delisting will also give CMB more flexibility in accessing alternative financing instruments,” Marc Saverys explained when the takeover scheme was announced in September.

Saverco previously noted that the public takeover process would proceed so long as no event occurs that has an adverse effect on CMB’s $12.5m consolidated EBITDA and/or the Baltic Dry Index does not fall below 668 points. Although the BDI was yesterday assessed at 562 points, CMB posted consolidated EBITDA of $30.426m during the third quarter 2015.

Holly Birkett

Holly is Splash's Online Editor and correspondent for the UK and Mediterranean. She has been a maritime journalist since 2010, and has written for and edited several trade publications. She is currently studying for membership of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers. In 2013, Holly won the Seahorse Club's Social Media Journalist of the Year award. She is currently based in London.
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