MultiChoice rejects takeover by French firm

The MultiChoice Group has rejected a move by Vivendi SE’s Canal to be the highest shareholder in the company, saying the price undervalues the business. Recall that the French company last week made a move to buy the 61 per cent share not under its proposed offer price of 105 rand ($5.55) per share in […]

The MultiChoice Group has rejected a move by Vivendi SE’s Canal to be the highest shareholder in the company, saying the price undervalues the business.

Recall that the French company last week made a move to buy the 61 per cent share not under its proposed offer price of 105 rand ($5.55) per share in cash amounting to $2.5bn, but the company while rejecting the offer said it “significantly undervalues the group and its future prospects.”

It said an evaluation it recently conducted showed the MultiChoice Group significantly above 105 rand a share.

The Canal+ valuation excluded the synergies that a potential deal will offer.

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Canal+ is already the biggest shareholder with 35.01 per cent share, passing the threshold for triggering a mandatory offer.

MultiChoice said in a separate statement on Monday that it had filed a notice with South Africa’s Takeover Regulation Panel and asked it to rule on whether such an offer must be made to all shareholders.

It said, “The MultiChoice board remains open to engage with any party in respect of any offer which is for a fair price and is subject to appropriate conditions.”