Altech’s minority shareholders on Friday gave the nod to Altron to buy them out. The move has cleared the way for Altron to terminate Altech’s listing on the stock exchange in Johannesburg.
Altron already holds 61% of Altech. It’s the second attempt in six years by Altron, which is controlled by the Venter family, to buy out minorities in Altech. The last offer did not receive sufficient support.
In order for the transaction to be approved by special resolution, a minimum of 75% of the minority shareholders had to vote in favour of the offer tabled by Altron.
“It is expected that the transaction will result in a more investor-friendly structure for the Altron group, with only a single JSE-listed entry point,” Altron said in a statement following the conclusion of Friday’s shareholder meeting. “It will also achieve more efficient capital allocation within the group and further enable convergence synergies to be unlocked.”
Altron CEO Robbie Venter said the rationale for the transaction was that convergence of the telecommunications and IT sectors meant that Altech and another subsidiary, Bytes, have many “synergistic areas of business”.
“Fully owning Altech will allow us to unlock these synergies, streamline our group structure and improve our go-to-market [ability] in terms of more focused offerings to clients.”
Altech shareholders can elect either to take shares in Altron or receive a cash payout. They have until 16 August to decide. Altech will be delisted from the JSE on 20 August. — (c) 2013 NewsCentral Media
