In February, Canal+’s stake in MultiChoice passed the 35% mark, triggering a law that allowed it to present a mandatory offer to shareholders of the South African broadcaster. While that offer is under consideration, Canal+ has continued to snap up MultiChoice shares on the open market, increasing its stake to 40.8%.
Between April 12 and 15, Canal+ bought 3.5 million MultiChoice shares at an average price of R116 per share, lower than the mandatory share offer of R125. It continues an almost three-year move by the French broadcaster, which has 8 million customers in Africa, to take over MultiChoice.
While South African law mandates any entity with more than a 35% stake in a listed company to make an offer for all outstanding shares, another law limits foreign entities’ voting rights in acquired broadcasting companies to 20%.
As both companies continue to work out how to get a deal over the line despite regulatory hurdles, Canal+ is mopping up shares at a significant discount. If the transaction is finalised, Canal+ will likely have to pay less than its $1.9 billion offer. Per law, MultiChoice is not allowed to issue any more…
Ephraim Modise
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https://techcabal.com/2024/04/18/canal-multichoice-share-purchase/
