KUALA LUMPUR – Last year, the Securities Commission (SC) considered 80 applications in relation to takeovers, mergers, and compulsory acquisitions (M&A) rules, compared with 81 applications in 2019.
A total of 25 offer documents were cleared by SC involving a total offer value of RM3.49 billion, or an average of RM139.57 million per offer, representing a decrease of RM1.41 billion against the previous year.
“Of these 25 offers, six offers were undertaken by way of schemes, whereby two of the schemes involved unlisted public companies (six schemes in 2019),” it said in the SC Malaysia Annual Report 2020 released today.
The commission said the offer in relation to TA Enterprise Bhd, was the largest offer during the year at RM0.74 billion in offer value, representing 21% of the total offer value for 2020.
Other notable offers in terms of offer values include TA Global Bhd and Caring Pharmacy Group Bhd with offer values of RM0.59 billion and RM0.26 billion, respectively.
In 2020, there were 11 proposed privatisation offers, whereby one such scheme, namely for Cycle & Carriage Bintang Bhd, was unsuccessful as it failed to obtain the requisite approval from its shareholders.
“As at December 31, 2020, save for the ongoing offer for TA Enterprise Bhd, all the other privatisation offers were either completed with the companies already delisted from the stock exchange or being implemented.
“The remaining 14 takeover offers were not privatisation offers, of which two offers were for unlisted companies, two offers were still ongoing as at December 31, and three offers, namely for MESB Bhd, Watta Holding Bhd, and Advance Information Marketing Bhd were not sufficiently attractive to garner the acceptances required to meet the acceptance condition,” it said.
A total of 21 offers were in relation to companies listed on the main market with the remaining two listed on the ACE Market of Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd.
The industrial products and services sector garnered the most interest with a total offer value of RM0.93 billion (representing 27% of the total offer value involving seven target companies or 27% of total number of offers).
Takeovers, mergers, and acquisitions in the country are primarily governed by SC under the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007, the Malaysian Code on Takeovers and Mergers 2016, and the Rules on Takeovers, Mergers, and Compulsory Acquisitions to ensure that the acquisition of voting shares or control of companies takes place in an efficient, competitive and informed market. – Bernama, March 18, 2021
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