Fortis to consider binding offers; rules out IHH, Fosun
ACQUISITION PLAN Winning bids to be put up for shareholder approval in May MUMBAI:
The board of Fortis Healthcare Limited on Thursday announced the appointment of an advisory committee headed by former PWC India Chairman Deepak Kapoor to evaluate binding bids received for the healthcare chain to date.
Ruling out non-binding offers in contention, Brian Tempest, director of the board, Fortis Healthcare Limited said, “The advisory committee will only consider the binding offers received so far and submit its recommendation to the board on 25th April, following the board will meet on 26th April decide on the recommendation”.
Though Tempest did not elaborate on which are the binding offers, Mint has reported earlier that Malaysia’s IHH Healthcare Bhd and China’s Fosun International have both submitted non binding offer for Fortis, while the combine of private equity fund TPG and Manipal Healthcare Enterprises and family offices of Sunil Munjal and Anand Burman have separately submitted binding offers with both sweetening their initial offers.
“The conversations with regard to ownership change in Fortis have gone on for more than one and half years and the board is of the view that its decision to consider only the binding bids is in the best interest of the shareholders” Tempest told newspersons in a media conference call.
As per the takeover norms, the winning bids once approved by the board will be put before shareholder approval in an extraordinary general body meeting ( EGM) expected in the last week of May.
Earlier in the day, Fortis Healthcare in a regulatory filing said has said it received a notice from a group of shareholders including National Westminster Bank Plc and East Bridge Capital Master Fund seeking removal of four directors from the board.
Fortis said the shareholders which have an aggregate of 12.04% of the paid up capital of the firm have sought removal of Brian Tempest, Harpal Singh, Sabina Vaisoha and Lt Gen Tejinder Singh Shergill from the board.
Mint was the first to report on April 2, that Eastbridge Capital along with some other minority shareholders unhappy with the valuation offered by TPG - Manipal were seeking the ouster of current board and were likely to call for an EGM.
“Anyone who has 10% or more stake is at liberty to call for an EGM and we respect their right to do so “Tempest said.
“As sought by these shareholders the board will decide on a date of the EGM, which I expect will happen in May.”
In addition to the above decision, the board of Fortis on Wednesday also approved the appointment of former PWC India senior partner Rohit Bhasin as an Additional independent Director with immediate effect for a period of five years.
On Mint’s query on the findings of the forensic audit being conducted by law firm Luthra and Luthra on the financial dealings of former Fortis promoters Malvinder and Shivinder Singh, Tempest said that the finding were still awaited.
“I am not in a position to say whether the audit will reveal new liabilities for Fortis”. Meanwhile, according to two people aware of the developments IHH Healthcare has sought a three week period to make a binding offer for Fortis.
“IHH has also sought access to Fortis’s data room to able to make the binding offer” the first person cited above.
In another development a news channel reported citing people aware of the development that the KKR-Radiant Lifecare Private Limited has made a nonbinding offer of ₹10,000 crore upfront payment for the healthcare chain translating into a share price of ₹165 a piece.