Dorr Global Healthcare ups stake in Axington to 87.71% at offer's close

DORR Global Healthcare's mandatory unconditional cash offer for Axington shares closed with valid acceptances of 20.81 per cent as at 5.30pm on Monday.

This will raise Dorr's stake in the Catalist-listed professional services group to 87.71 per cent, including shares owned, controlled or agreed to be acquired by the offeror and its concert parties.

Shares in Axington closed at 22 Singapore cents on Monday, up one cent or 4.8 per cent. This is above Dorr's offer price of 20.8 Singapore cents.

Axington, formerly known as Axcelasia, provides advisory services such as internal audit and quality assurance review as well as strategy and risk advisory.

On June 1, Dorr, which provides management consultancy services for healthcare organisations, said it planned to make the cash offer in a deal that valued Axington at some S$33.3 million. The offer price represented a premium of 43.45 per cent to Axington's last traded price of 14.5 cents on May 26.

Following the announcement, shares in Axington rose to 21.5 Singapore cents on June 2 and was actively traded, in part due to married trades related to the offer. 

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Dorr was required to make an offer for all remaining shares of Axington, after Dorr agreed to acquire a 66.9 per cent stake from Axington's deputy executive chairman Tang Swee Guan, his wife Chai Seow Lin, non-independent non-executive director Ranjit Singh, non-independent non-executive chairman Veerinderjeet Singh, and his wife Rajinderpal Kaur.

Dorr is owned by entrepreneurs Terence Loh and Nelson Loh, who are cousins and former investment bankers.

In a separate bourse filing on Monday night, Axington announced that it has appointed Novus Corporate Finance as its new continuing sponsor in place of UOB Kay Hian, "due to commercial reasons". This takes effect from Tuesday.