|
Mumbai:
DHL has announced an investment of Rs730 crore for the
acquisition of a majority stake in Blue Dart Express Ltd,
the largest domestic express player. This includes an
acquisition of 161.8 crore shares aggregating 68 per cent
equity in Blue Dart at Rs350 per share for a total of
Rs566.5 crore from the three founding shareholders of
the Indian company and Schroder Capital Partners.
While
the founding shareholders are Clyde Cooper (16.6 per
cent), Tushar Jani (16.74 per cent) and Khusro Dubash
(15.89 per cent), the remaining equity portion being
acquired by DHL includes 17 per cent from New Field
Holding, the investment arm of Schroder Capital Partners
Ltd. The remaining 1.98 per cent equity that is to change
hands is held by Blue Dart Courier Services.
"It
will be business as usual for both the companies which
will run independently. There are natural, inherent
synergies between the two and the current board of Blue
Dart will remain in place," said Bryan Jamison,
regional director, South-East Asia and Indian Sub-Continent,
DHL Express Asia Pacific.
DHL
said it had finalised agreements with the shareholders.
In line with statutory requirements, DHL will make a
20 per cent mandatory open offer to the public shareholders
on November 11 at
Rs350 per share in cash, subject to the terms and conditions
set out in the offer document, thus taking up the total
investment by DHL to Rs730 crore.
|
