The Portuguese stock exchange regulator has said Isabel dos Santos will have to raise the price of her €1.35 per share bid for PT SGPS in order to comply with local regulations.
The CMVM said in a statement that Terra Peregrin, dos Santos’…
The Portuguese stock exchange regulator has said Isabel dos Santos will have to raise the price of her €1.35 per share bid for PT SGPS in order to comply with local regulations.
The CMVM said in a statement that Terra Peregrin, dos Santos’ investment vehicle, cannot be exempted from following the rule stating that the bidding price must not be lower than the share’s average price over the last six months, which would reportedly equal to €1.94 per share.
Angolan entrepreneur dos Santos, also a controlling shareholder in Portuguese number two carrier Nos, filed a €1.2bn (US$1.4bn) bid for PT SGPS, which holds more than 25% of Brazilian telco Oi, in early November.
The move was reportedly aimed at thwarting a bid by telecoms group Altice for Portuguese incumbent PT Portugal, which is owned by Oi.
Although both analysts and PT SGPS board members pointed out that her offer undervalued the company, a spokesperson for dos Santos repeatedly said she would not increase the bidding price.
Terra Peregrin reportedly argued that the six-month rule could not be applied in the case of PT SGPS since Rioforte’s default on debt held by the holding company had caused its shares to plunge.
Dos Santos’s bid for PT SGPS is reportedly aimed at capitalising on potential synergies by linking PT Portugal, Oi and Angola’s Unitel, in which the Rio de Janeiro-based telco and the Angolan billionaire hold a 25% stake each.
Earlier this month, Oi agreed to sell PT Portugal to Altice for €7.4bn (US$9.1bn). Altice, which is already present in Portugal via cableco Cabovisao and telecoms unit Oni, has reportedly said it would be willing to sell the cable operator to persuade regulators to clear the deal.
