A cheeky website about deals, dealmakers and anything else I find interesting. Edited by Ben Harrington. If you have a tip or want to discuss a story please feel free to email Betaville at ben@betaville.co.uk. Betaville can also be reached at Whats App, Signal or Telegram. Betaville's Twitter handle is @bharringtonw11 and you can message me via Twitter with stories.
The French stockmarket seems to be the exciting place to be at the moment.
Now, regular readers will have seen what has happened to Solutions 30, the Paris-listed Luxembourg based outsourcer, this morning but there is another tale captivating continental investors...
Betaville notes that billionaire Johann Rupert, who controls Compagnie Financiere Richemont, has finally admitted that that he has been approached by rival Kering about a $150 billion mega merger. Below is a link to yesterday's Financial Times piece with the on the record quotes.
https://www.ft.com/content/da8f16e6-5c0a-4fd9-99a4-ade9583c55fd..
Solutions 30 has finally released its "communication" to the market and it's not looking good.
I have pasted the announcement below with the interesting and awry bits in bold. Happy reading!
MARKET INFORMATION AND RESUMPTION OF TRADING ON MONDAY, MAY 24, 2021
..
Hugo Boss shares are up over 5pc this morning following a report from a German magazine that Mike Ashley is weighing a takeover bid to buy the fashion brand outright.
Wily Ashley, the controversial billionaire owner of Newcastle United Football Club, has been building a stake in Hugo Boss for sometime but now the monthly Manager Magazin is claiming he is "in talks" to buy the whole business for over EURO 3.2 billion. Below is a link to the piece:..
The bizarre goings on at Solutions 30, the controversial France-listed Luxembourg-based outsourcer, continue, with the French regulator and Financial Times jumping onto the stock suspension story. Below is a link to Jamie Powell's (of FT Alphaville) excellent summary of the situation since Betaville last published Part 4 a week ago:..
There was a frisson of excitement around Stride, Inc yesterday after rivals at StreetInsider suggested Pearson, the FTSE 100-listed education publisher, is interested in acquiring the US-based group.
However, flaks at Pearson were quick too pour cold water on the StreetInsider tale, denying it to rival American wesbite Seeking Alpha...
Ed Hammond's Sunday mega scoop about AT&T folding its WarnerMedia unit into a joint venture with Discovery has today been officially confirmed. Below is a link the official press release:..
Chums at the Mail on Sunday dug out a decent tale about top institutional shareholders backing GlaxoSmithKline in its running battle with American hedgie Elliott Management...
The Financial Times has just published an excellent piece about the mysterious financial and political fixer Ian Osborne, who has raised almost $500 million for a European SPAC. Below is a link to the piece.
https://www.ft.com/content/3ed742fd-ee22-475a-92d0-aeb5ce186ad2?sharetype=blocked..
Private equity bids for London-listed companies are coming thick and fast.
Mark, "The Kleinmanator", Kleinman of Sky News had the scoop yesterday evening with his tale about Cinven approaching Sanne Group about a take private. Below is a link to Mark's story:..
Hacks at Bloomberg have just landed a big fund management scoop - Schroders has been looking at a £5 billion plus takeover of M&G. Below is the link:
Remember Solutions 30?
It is the France-listed Luxembourg-based outsourcer that saw its share price collapse in early December following the publication of an anonymous short report and an attack by Muddy Waters, the feared short selling outfit led by Carson Block...
Betaville notes Brooks Automation last night announced announced it was splitting into two following a "strategic review". Below is a link to the press release:
So, it looks like little old Betaville was barking up the right tree earlier, with the £500 million fundraising coming from, er, SoftBank. Below is the link to The Hut Group's announcement of a rather complicated transaction that involves a joint venture, equity issue and acquisition:..
The Hut Group, the London-listed e-commerce retail giant, is rumoured to be working on a deal that could see the company raise up to £500 million of fresh funds.
People following the situation suggested the £500 million deal may be immiment although it's not clear what type of transaction is being contemplated by The Hut Group.
It's also not clear what the funds will be used for, said people following the situation...
Arch rivals at Dealreporter (where Betaville's illustrious career in financial journalism began) revealed this morning that Woodward, the US-listed designer of controls for the aerospace industry, is looking at London-listed Meggitt, the jet parts manufacturer for the defence companies.
That tale sent Meggitt's shares skyrocketing almost 14pc but there was no announcement from either party confirming any talks or even weighing of an offer...
The stakebuilding shenanigans at Amigo Loans continues.
Today, Bybrook Capital - which describes itself as an 'absolute value credit fund manager' - announced it has increased its stake in the controversial subprime lender to 9.1pc while last week JP Morgan said it controls 8.3pc.
Some market scallywags reckon JP Morgan is fronting a stakebuilding for another outfit, possibly even Bybrook...
[Disclaimer - the information on Betaville does not consitute any form of investment recommendation and is not intended to be relied upon by readers in making, or refraining from, any investment decisions].