UK Firm De La Rue Targeted With $301 Million Bid By Edi Truell Consortium
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De La Rue has received a takeover offer from a group of companies led by British investor Edi Truell, making the company’s shares jump by 14%.
The firm had been talking about selling a 40% share to the group, which includes Pension SuperFund Capital and Truell’s Disruptive Capital GP for 125 pence per share.
The group has now given a possible offer to buy the whole company for the same 125 pence per share. This is almost 22% higher than the company’s last closing price, making it worth about 245 million pounds ($301 million).
The Offer Depends On Selling De La Rue’s Authentication Business
According to the update, the offer depends on selling De La Rue’s authentication business, and the group has until February 6 to decide if they want to make a final offer or back out.
De La Rue’s shares were the biggest gainers on the FTSE smallcap index, jumping up when the takeover offer was revealed.
De La Rue, which produced the King Charles III banknotes in the UK, has been making efforts to fix its financial problems since many people started using cards instead of cash during the COVID-19 pandemic. This caused its orders to drop.
Although orders have started to grow again, De La Rue is still trying to pay off its debts and fix its pension problems, a leftover issue that has stopped the firm from paying money to its shareholders.
Business expert Truell manages billions through his investment funds. He recently made an offer to invest a couple of hundred million pounds to help pay for Thames Water’s pension through a deal with Pension SuperFund Capital.
The Company Will Focus On Securing Contracts To Print Banknotes Worldwide
Truell believes that this takeover, along with the money from selling De La Rue’s authentication arm, will help the company pay off some of its debts, make the business more stable, and focus on getting contracts to print banknotes for nations worldwide. He stated that there is a big need for banknotes particularly in the Middle East and Africa, where many people rely on them to purchase what they need to survive
De La Rue, now based in Basingstoke, Hampshire, was established in 1813 as a printing firm by Thomas de la Rue in Guernsey. The company then moved to London ten years later, selling stationery and straw hats.
It has a deal with the Bank of England to manage the central bank’s printing plant in Debden, Essex, and helped print millions of new banknotes with King Charles’ picture before his coronation
The company noted that it was still talking with other companies about selling its currency business but couldn’t be sure if any such offers will be made.
