NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART IN, INTO OR FROM ANY JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS IN THAT JURISDICTION
8 October 2019
RECOMMENDED FINAL CASH OFFER
for
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels plc (the "Offeree")
by
Agapier Investments Limited (the "Offeror")
(a company indirectly and wholly-owned by City Developments Limited ("CDL"))
COMPULSORY ACQUISITION OF OFFEREE SHARES
On 7 June 2019, the boards of CDL and the Offeror and the independent non-executive directors of the Offeree announced a recommended pre-conditional cash offer pursuant to which the Offeror would acquire the entire issued and to be issued ordinary share capital of the Offeree not already owned by CDL and its subsidiaries (and persons acting in concert with them), which is final and will not be increased (the "Final Offer"). The full terms of, and conditions to, the Final Offer and the procedures for acceptance were set out in the offer document dated 15 August 2019 (the "Offer Document").
On 12 September 2019, the Offeror declared the Final Offer unconditional both as to acceptances and in all respects.
As at 3.00 p.m. on 7 October 2019, being the latest practicable date prior to making of this announcement, the Offeror has received valid acceptances under the Final Offer in respect of 112,191,077 Offeree Shares representing approximately 99.24 per cent. of the issued ordinary share capital of the Offeree not already owned by the CDL Parties as at 7 June 2019, to which the Final Offer relates.
Further to its announcement on 27 September 2019 regarding its intention to implement the compulsory acquisition procedure under Chapter 3 of Part 28 of the Companies Act 2006 (the "Act"), as set out in the Offer Document, the Offeror announces the despatch today of formal compulsory acquisition notices under Sections 979 and 980 of the Act (the "Compulsory Acquisition Notices") to Offeree Shareholders who have not yet accepted the Final Offer. These notices set out the Offeror's intention to apply the provisions of Section 979 of the Act to acquire compulsorily any remaining Offeree Shares in respect of which the Final Offer has not been accepted on the same terms as the Final Offer.
If any of the Offeree Shareholders have not accepted the Final Offer and have not applied to the court in respect of all their holding of Offeree Shares by 19 November 2019 (being six weeks from the date of the Compulsory Acquisition Notices), the Offeree Shares held by those Offeree Shareholders will be compulsorily acquired by the Offeror on the same terms as the Final Offer. The consideration to which those Offeree Shareholders will be entitled will be held by the Offeree as trustee on behalf of those Offeree Shareholders who have not accepted the Final Offer and they will be requested to claim their consideration by writing to the Offeree at the end of the six week period.
Further acceptances
The Final Offer will remain open for acceptance until further notice.
Offeree Shareholders who wish to accept the Final Offer and who have not done so and hold their shares in certificated form, should return their completed Acceptance Form along with their share certificate(s) to arrive to the Receiving Agent, Equiniti Limited at Corporate Actions, Aspect House, Spencer Road, Lancing,
Offeree Shareholders who wish to accept the Final Offer and who have not done so and hold their shares in uncertificated form (i.e. in CREST) should refer to the instructions set out in paragraph 21(b) of Part II of the Offer Document and in Part D of Appendix I of the Offer Document.
If you have any questions relating to how you may accept the Final Offer, you are requested to contact the Receiving Agent, Equiniti Limited on 0371 384 2140 (if calling within the
Settlement
Settlement of consideration to which any accepting Offeree Shareholder is entitled under the Final Offer will be despatched as follows: (i) in the case of acceptances which have been received and are valid and complete in all respects by 1.00 p.m. on the date of this announcement, within 14 days; or (ii) in the case of acceptances which are valid and complete in all respects and received after the date of this announcement but while the Final Offer remains open for acceptance, within 14 days of such receipt, in each case in the manner described in the Offer Document.
Non-assenting Offeree Shareholders who do not accept the Final Offer will not receive payment until after compulsory acquisition has been implemented.
Unless expressly defined in this announcement, terms defined in the Offer Document have the same meaning when used in this announcement. All references to time in this announcement are to
Enquiries
City Developments Limited and Agapier Investments Limited Belinda Lee, Head, Investor Relations & Corporate Communications |
+65 68778315 |
Barclays Bank PLC, acting through its Investment Bank |
|
Joint Financial Adviser to CDL and the Offeror Gaurav Gooptu |
+ 44 (0) 20 7623 2323 |
Sandeep Pahwa |
|
Brendan Jarvis |
|
BofA Merrill Lynch |
|
Joint Financial Adviser to CDL and the Offeror Geoff Iles |
+44 (0) 20 7628 1000 |
Kieran Millar |
|
Media Enquiries: |
|
For CDL - Belinda Lee, Head, Investor Relations & Corporate Communications |
+65 68778315 belindalee@cdl.com.sg |
Important notices
Barclays Bank PLC, acting through its Investment Bank ("Barclays"), which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated in the
BofA Merrill Lynch, a subsidiary of Bank of America Corporation, is acting exclusively for CDL and the Offeror in connection with the Final Offer and for no one else and will not be responsible to anyone other than CDL and the Offeror for providing the protections afforded to its clients or for providing advice in relation to the Final Offer or any other matter referred to in this announcement.
In accordance with the Code, normal
Further information
This announcement is for information purposes only. It is not intended to and does not constitute, or form part of, an offer to sell or an invitation or the solicitation of an offer to purchase, otherwise acquire, subscribe for, sell or otherwise dispose of any securities or the solicitation of any vote or approval in any jurisdiction in contravention of applicable law. The Final Offer has been made solely by means of an Offer Document and the Form of Acceptance accompanying the Offer Document, which contain the full terms and conditions of the Final Offer, including details of how the Final Offer may be accepted.
This announcement has been prepared for the purpose of complying with English law, the Listing Rules, the rules of the London Stock Exchange, the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014, the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules and the Code and the information disclosed may not be the same as that which would have been disclosed if this announcement had been prepared in accordance with the laws and/or regulations of jurisdictions outside the
The release, publication or distribution of this announcement in certain jurisdictions other than the
Overseas Shareholders
The Final Offer is not being made, directly or indirectly, in, into or from a Restricted Jurisdiction where to do so would violate the laws in that jurisdiction, and the Final Offer is not capable of acceptance from or within a Restricted Jurisdiction. Accordingly, copies of the Offer Document, the Form of Acceptance and any accompanying document are not being, and must not be, directly or indirectly, mailed or otherwise forwarded, distributed or sent in, into or from a Restricted Jurisdiction where to do so would violate the laws in that jurisdiction, and persons receiving the Offer Document, the Form of Acceptance and any accompanying document (including custodians, agents, nominees and trustees) must not mail or otherwise distribute or send them in, into or from such jurisdictions as doing so may invalidate any purported acceptance of the Final Offer.
The availability of the Final Offer to Offeree shareholders who are not resident in the
If you are a resident of
The Final Offer is being made for securities of an English company and is being made in
The Final Offer is subject to disclosure and procedural requirements of the
It may be difficult for US holders of shares in CDL, the Offeror or the Offeree to enforce their rights and claims arising out of the US federal securities laws, since CDL, the Offeror and the Offeree are located in countries other than
In accordance with normal
Forward Looking Statements
This announcement, including any information included or incorporated by reference in this announcement, contains statements about the Offeror, CDL and the Offeree that are or may be forward looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical facts included in this announcement may be forward looking statements. Without limitation, any statements preceded or followed by or that include the words "targets", "plans", "believes", "expects", "aims", "intends", "will", "may", "anticipates", "estimates", "projects" or words or terms of similar substance or the negative thereof, are forward looking statements. Forward looking statements include statements relating to the following: (i) future capital expenditures, expenses, revenues, earnings, synergies, economic performance, indebtedness, financial condition, dividend policy, losses and future prospects; (ii) business and management strategies and the expansion and growth of the Offeror's or CDL's or the Offeree's operations; and (iii) the anticipated effects of the Final Offer on the Wider CDL Group and the business and operations of the Offeree.
Such forward looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could significantly affect expected results and are based on certain key assumptions. Many factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or implied in any forward looking statements. Much of the risk and uncertainty relates to factors that are beyond the companies' abilities to control or estimate precisely, such as future events, future market conditions and the behaviours of other market participants. Other unknown or unpredictable factors could affect future operations and/or cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward looking statements. Such forward looking statements should be construed in the light of such factors, and therefore undue reliance should not be placed on such statements.
Each forward looking statement speaks only as at the date of this announcement. None of the Offeror, nor CDL nor the Offeree, nor any of their respective associates or directors, officers, employees, managers, agents, representatives, partners, members, consultants or advisers: (i) provide any representation, warranty, assurance or guarantee that the occurrence of the events expressed or implied in any forward looking statements will actually occur; nor (ii) assume any obligation to, and do not intend to, revise or update these forward looking statements, except as required pursuant to applicable law. The Offeror and CDL disclaim any obligation to update any forward looking or other statements contained herein, except as required by applicable law. All forward looking statements contained in this announcement are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section.
Publication on website
This announcement will be made available, subject to certain restrictions relating to persons resident in Restricted Jurisdictions, on the website of CDL at: http://www.cdl.com.sg/Millennium-Offer and the Offeree at: https://investors.millenniumhotels.com/regulatory-announcements-and-news/city-developments-ltd-offer-documents promptly and by no later than 12 noon (
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the