Tycoon-backed group seeks to win over shareholders in tussle for Singapore firm (updated)

Hotel Properties

16/11/2021 11:31

* Cuscaden offering S$2.4/share vs Keppel's S$2.351 bid
    * Keppel sticks to its final offer
    * SPH's shareholders need to first reject Keppel's bid
    * Cuscaden's bid needs to be approved by SPH's shareholders
    * Cuscaden eyeing social media to reach out to shareholders

 (Recasts with comments from Cuscaden)
    By Nikhil Nainan and Anshuman Daga
    Nov 16 (Reuters) - Cuscaden Peak, which trumped a bid to
take control of Singapore Press Holdings (SPH)  SPRM.SI , is
seeking support from SPH's shareholders to vote against its
rival's offer as it aims to seal the deal, a senior executive
told Reuters.
    The comments come hours after Keppel Corp  KPLM.SI  on
Tuesday said it would stick to its final offer following
Cuscaden's sweetened  nL1N2S50O1S$3.9 billion ($2.9 billion)
bid, in a rare bidding war between two groups linked to
Singapore state investor Temasek.
    Keppel offered S$2.351 per share nL4N2S700T, or $2.8
billion. The two groups are vying for control of SPH's global
portfolio of property assets, student accommodation and elderly
care homes.  
    Cuscaden - a consortium of billionaire property tycoon Ong
Beng Seng's Hotel Properties  HPPS.SI  and two independently
managed portfolio companies of Temasek - will need SPH
shareholders to first vote against Keppel's offer at a meeting
next month, before a second vote later in favour of its own bid.
   
    "We would be definitely be reaching out to shareholders,"
Christopher Lim, Hotel Properties' group executive director and
representative of the consortium said on Tuesday. 
    SPH and Cuscaden have also entered into an implementation
agreement and SPH's independent directors have preliminarily
recommended the deal to shareholders.
    It's "unprecedented" that SPH shareholders will get to vote
first on Keppel's "inferior" bid, said Lim. He pointed to paid
advertisements and social media as platforms Cuscaden would use
to get the consortium's message to shareholders.
    SPH shares closed 1.7% higher at S$2.37.
    Keppel on Tuesday said it has already obtained regulatory
approvals and its offer has a quicker path for the deal to be
completed.
        
    ($1 = 1.3538 Singapore dollars)

 (Reporting by Nikhil Kurian Nainan and Anshuman Daga;
Additional reporting by Sameer Manekar in Bengaluru; Editing by
Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
 ((NikhilKurian.Nainan@thomsonreuters.com; Twitter:
@NikhilKurianN))