GK Goh loses free float; founder and son to exercise right of compulsory acquisition
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GK Goh no longer meets the SGX's free-float requirement, under which a company must ensure at least 10 per cent of its total number of issued shares are held by the public.
PHOTO: ST FILE
Jessie Lim
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SINGAPORE – A special purpose vehicle (SPV) owned by GK Goh’s founder and chairman and its managing director will be making a compulsory acquisition of all the issued and paid-up shares in the company.
As at 6pm on Monday, the total number of shares owned, controlled or agreed to be acquired by Verveine, the SPV, and its concert parties, as well as valid acceptances of the offer, totalled 288.8 million shares.
That amounts to 91.88 per cent of the total number of shares of GK Goh in issue.
In February, GK Goh executive chairman Goh Geok Khim and his son, managing director Goh Yew Lin, launched a voluntary cash offer
As more than 90 per cent of its shares have been or will be acquired, GK Goh no longer meets the Singapore Exchange’s free-float requirement, under which an issuer must ensure at least 10 per cent of its total number of issued shares are held by the public.
This means that GK Goh’s owners can take the listed company private and Verveine “will in due course” exercise its right of compulsory acquisition.
Verveine is not planning to take any steps to restore the free float of GK Goh’s shares. It intends to delist the company once the offer closes.
Shareholders who have not accepted the offer have until 5.30pm on April 25, 2023, to accept the offer and realise their shares at the $1.26 offer price.
When the privatisation offer was launched, Mr Goh Yew Lin said the company’s share price had been trading for some time at a discount to book value with low liquidity.
The offer price represented premiums of 38.8 per cent, 39.2 per cent, 37.6 per cent and 34.8 per cent over the volume-weighted average price for the one-month, three-month, six-month and 12-month periods, respectively, up to and including the last full market day prior to the offer announcement.
Mr Goh said the delisting and privatisation of the company will allow its owners to restructure its asset mix and take strategic long-term decisions without as much pressure to deliver profits in the short term.
“Many of the company’s existing investments are in private equity and venture capital funds, which will take time to mature and which cannot easily be sold or redeemed,” he said.
“We also view the company’s aged-care businesses and assets in Australia and Singapore as long-term in nature, requiring patience and determination to build value,” he added.
Shares of GK Goh ended flat at $1.25 on Tuesday. THE BUSINESS TIMES
