Don’t leave us hanging: Qatar and Brookfield “remind” Songbird shareholders to approve bid for Canary Wharf owner before deadline
In what must be a last-ditch attempt to woo the shareholders of Songbird, Qatar Investment Authority and Brookfield have sent out an alert to "remind" them of the takeover bid for the Canary Wharf owner.
The pair increased the offer from 295p per share to 350p per share last autumn, but Songbird urged its shareholders not to accept saying it did not "reflect the full value of the business, its unique operating platform and its prospects".
QIA and Brookfield disagree, however. The pair said today:
The Songbird Offer provides an attractive opportunity for Songbird shareholders to realise, in cash at a premium, their investment in a highly illiquid stock which has not paid a dividend over the past five years.
Songbird's share price stood at 321p at pixel time.
As well as the updated bid, the two parties introduced amendments that would enable smaller Songbird shareholders to have greater say over the company's executives, increasing the maximum number of directors they could appoint from two to five.
The deadline is 1pm on January 29 (next Thursday). QIA and Brookfield said they "encourage Songbird shareholders, who have not yet done so, to accept the Songbird offer as soon as possible".
So will it go ahead, even without the backing of the property firm's board? Possibly.
Bidco has received "irrevocable undertakings" from holders of around 6.7 per cent of Songbird's issued share capital (or 32 per cent of its free float).
An unnamed shareholder which owns seven per cent of the Canary Wharf Group shares has also said it will accept any cash offer for those shares made on a see-through basis to the final offer price for Songbird.