Citigroup raises offer for Nikko
March 12, The largest bank in US, Citigroup Inc., said that it raised its takeover offer for scandal-tainted Nikko Cordial Corporation by 26 percent in a deal worth up to $13.35 billions. Citibank raised its takeover, after the Japanese brokerage’s largest shareholders rejected the initial price as too low.
According to a joint statement, the boards of the two companies agreed to raise the tender offer price for Nikko Cordial to 1,700 yen ($14.40) a share from last week’s initial 1,350 yen ($11.44) a share offer. It would be the biggest foreign acquisition of a Japanese securities company.
Citigroup has aimed to raise its stake to up to 100 percent from the 4.9. It said that it would begin an allcash tender offer for Nikko Cordial stock as soon as practicable. Citigroup also raised the offer price after the Tokyo stock exchange that it would keep Nikko Cordial’s shares listed despite an accounting scandal last year.
Nikko Cordial’s shares were placed on the exchange’s supervisory post for review in December after the company announced it would correct its net profit for the fiscal years that ended March 2005 and March 2006. Nikko Cordial sent its shares surging 6.12 percent on March 12 to close at 1,490 yen in Tokyo.
