OCBC-GE deal: Here’s what I got wrong
While the path to a delisting for Great Eastern could be more complicated than it was for Boustead Projects, it would be unwise to assume SGX RegCo will do nothing
THIS column received some negative feedback after it said on Jun 17 that minority shareholders of Great Eastern might eventually get an exit offer that is higher than the current offer from OCBC, given the precedent set by the delisting of Boustead Projects at the direction of Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo).
These critics said I was potentially misleading shareholders of Great Eastern by making this comparison, because the offer for the insurer will probably not play out exactly the way the offer for Boustead Projects did.
Importantly, they pointed out that the offeror in the Boustead Projects case obtained more than 75 per cent of the shares held by independent shareholders at the close of its offer. The offeror for Great Eastern is unlikely to hit that threshold.
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