French billionaire Vincent Bollore, who owns Canal+ through Vivendi SE, has increased his offer for MultiChoice Group Ltd in South Africa to $2.9 Billion (about a 20% increment of the initial bid) and is now in exclusive talks to take over the well-known African broadcaster.
Canal+ Chairman and CEO, Maxime Saada, made the revelation that both companies have agreed to cooperate in a statement on Wednesday.
This development follows closely after MultiChoice rejected the initial proposal, citing undervaluation, and shortly after the Takeover Regulations Panel (TRP) of South Africa granted Canal+ until April 8, 2024, to submit a bid for any MultiChoice shares that it does not already own, With support from the massive South African technology company Naspers.
MultiChoice was founded in the early 1980s and presently boasts almost 20 million members throughout Africa. NBCUniversal, which holds 30% of the company, provided technology for Showmax’s latest relaunch, which saw it emerge as a major participant in the local original market.
According to Bloomberg, the increased bid amounts to an offer of 125 rand per share, which is a 20% increase from the original offer of 105 rand.
Since Canal+’s initial offer on February 1st, 2024, MultiChoice shares have gained 52% in value.
At that time, MultiChoice informed shareholders that it thought the offer was undervalued.
“Once the mandatory offer is made, the independent board of MultiChoice will be constituted and will, after receipt of the Independent Expert’s opinion, provide its opinion and recommendation.
“Nothing in this announcement should be read as limiting in any way the giving of such opinion,” the parties said.
Saada also underlined the importance of the required offer procedure, stressing that it is their goal to adhere to regulations and submit the mandatory offer by April 8. By combining its regional Canal+ operations with MultiChoice, Vivendi hopes to become a conglomerate with around 50 million customers and more capital available for local programming and sports investments.
