Liberty Global has announced its decision to reopen the voluntary and conditional public takeover bid for Telenet Group Holding (Telenet) in Belgium. The move comes after the company fell short of securing the minimum 95 percent shares during the first round of acceptance. During the initial acceptance period, which took place from June 8 to July 12, almost 34.7 million Telenet shares were tendered.
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Initial Acceptance Period
Liberty Global, through its subsidiary Liberty Global Belgium Holding, has successfully acquired 93.23 percent of Telenet Group Holding (Telenet) shares during the initial acceptance period of its public takeover bid. As a result, the Offer will own a total of around 101 million shares of Telenet starting from July 26 2023, according to the official release.
Second Chance for Shareholders
According to Liberty Global, shareholders who missed the initial acceptance period will have another opportunity during the subsequent acceptance period, set to reopen on August 24, 2023, and close on September 13, 2023. The successful acquisition positions Liberty Global to potentially initiate a simplified squeeze-out bid if it meets certain conditions after the Offer is completed.
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Payment Date and Offer Price Details
Payment for the tendered shares will take place on July 26 2023, with an offer price of EUR 21.00 per share after deduction of the EUR 1.00 gross dividend. After the initial acceptance period, the free float of Telenet shares will be limited to 6.77 percent. The reopening of the Offer provides investors who missed the initial period or seek additional liquidity with a chance to participate.
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Potential for Simplified Squeeze-Out Bid
The results of the subsequent acceptance period will be announced on or around September 20 2023, and payment for the shares tendered during this period will be made on or around September 27 2023, stated Liberty Global.
If Liberty Global, together with Telenet, owns at least 95 percent of Telenet shares and has acquired at least 90 percent of the subject shares through the Offer, a simplified squeeze-out bid will follow, subject to the same financial conditions as the initial Offer.
