Great Eastern shares jump 39% as OCBC mounts S$1.4 billion privatisation bid at S$25.60 per share

OCBC has made a voluntary unconditional general offer of S$1.4 billion for the remaining 11.56 per cent stake in Great Eastern that it does not own, with the aim to delist its insurance arm.

The offer price of S$25.60 per share represents a 36.9 per cent premium over Great Eastern’s last traded price of S$18.70 before the offer announcement. It is, however, at a 30 per cent discount to Great Eastern’s embedded value per share of S$36.59 as at Dec 31, 2023.

The privatisation aims to strengthen OCBC’s business pillars of banking, wealth management and insurance, as well as optimise its capital to enhance shareholder returns, said the bank in the morning.