Ong family raises privatisation offer for Lian Beng to 68 cents per share

SINGAPORE – Lian Beng Group’s controlling Ong family, through its investment holding company OSC Capital, has made a final offer consideration to take the company private at 68 cents per share.

OSC Capital does not intend to revise its final offer, it said on Wednesday. The holding company is 51 per cent owned by Lian Beng chairman Ong Pang Aik.

This came after OSC Capital made an offer of 62 cents per share in April, which was less than half the group’s net asset value of $1.54 per share as at the end of November 2022.

Mr David Gerald, president and chief executive officer of the Securities Investors Association (Singapore), previously said that the bid of 62 cents per share did not appear to be “fair or reasonable”, and called on the offeror to table a higher offer.

The offer of 68 cents per share represents an increase of six cents or approximately 9.7 per cent from the initial offer.

It also translates to a 19.3 per cent premium over the last transacted price per share of 57 cents as quoted on the Singapore Exchange on the last trading day prior to the offer announcement date on April 6.

Shareholders who had earlier accepted the voluntary unconditional cash offer are entitled to the final offer consideration.

The closing time and date of the offer have been set at 5.30pm on May 26.

In an update on the same day via another bourse filing, Lian Beng said it has received valid acceptances amounting to 67,600 shares as at 6pm.

This represents about 0.01 per cent of the total number of issued shares.

Shares of Lian Beng closed three cents, or 4.62 per cent, higher at 68 cents on Thursday.

THE BUSINESS TIMES