Hwa Hong extends closing date for privatisation offer to Jul 6

THE closing date for Sanjuro United’s voluntary conditional cash offer of S$0.40 per share to take Hwa Hong Corporation : H19 0% private has been extended to 5.30 pm on Jul 6, said the company in a bourse filing on Thursday (Jun 23).

This represents a week’s extension from its earlier deadline on Jun 28, when the offer was priced at S$0.37, before it was later raised to S$0.40 on Jun 7.

As at 6 pm on Jun 22, the total number of shares owned, controlled or agreed to be acquired by Sanjuro and its concert parties, and valid acceptances of the offer, amount to an aggregate of about 206.8 million shares. This represents about 31.7 per cent of the total number of shares.

The offer is conditional upon the offeror and its concert parties gaining control of more than 50 per cent of the total number of shares.

At the time the offer was made, Sanjuro and its concert parties had control of around 20 per cent of shares.

Separately in a response to a press statement by the Securities Investors Association (Singapore) advising Hwa Hong’s shareholders to hold for more information, the offerer referred shareholders to the withdrawal clause offered under terms of the deal.

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"In a competitive situation, if one offer becomes unconditional as to acceptances, then shareholders who have tendered their acceptances for the competing offer can, if they wish, immediately withdraw their acceptances for the unsuccessful offer,” Sanjuro wrote in its statement.

The offeror, Sanjuro United, is the bid vehicle of a consortium formed by shareholders of the company that collectively hold around 20 per cent of its shares.

It comprises Ely Investments, which is wholly-owned by former group managing director Ong Choo Eng and his family, and Ergonomix, which is wholly-owned by Dymon Asia Private Equity (South-east Asia) Fund II.

Other members of the consortium include Roswell Assets and Crystalic Star Global.

Shares of Hwa Hong closed flat at S$0.40 on Wednesday, before the deadline extension was announced.