Asia Securities executes largest listed company buyout in CSE history

Saturday, 16 September 2017 00:15 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Asia Securities arranged and executed the country’s largest acquisition of a controlling stake in a listed company in history yesterday.

In a deal valued at Rs. 10.9 billion, Hayleys PLC acquired 61.73% of Singer (Sri Lanka) PLC from Retail Holdings (Sri Lanka) BV. Additionally, Retail Holdings has the option to sell its remaining 9.47% stake in Singer to Hayleys or its nominees at a total value of Rs. 1.7 billion within a period of 12 to 15 months which, if executed, would result in a total transaction value of Rs. 12.6 billion. This transaction surpasses the Rs. 10.6 billion market transaction in shares of Commercial Credit and Finance PLC, also executed by Asia Securities in December 2016. Until now, that transaction was the largest carried out on the CSE over the last five years.

Asia Securities was engaged by the seller on advising and arranging the transaction. The seamless execution underlines Asia Securities’ capabilities in handling large and complex negotiated transactions. Asia Securities Chairman Dumith Fernando who is also a Director of the CSE remarked: “We feel fortunate to have been involved in bringing together two of the most respected corporate brands in the country. We are thankful to our clients who recognise our commitment to confidentiality and professionalism as key attributes in large strategic transactions. We hope to continue combining our international network with our on-the-ground industry insights in assisting corporate clients on strategic deals.”

Asia Securities is Sri Lanka’s leading independent equity brokerage firm and is the local market execution partner for several of the world’s leading investment banks and brokers. The firm has a 26-year history of leading market share and is also the only broker that ranks top 3 in terms of both exchange turnover and trade volume. Its client base includes prominent foreign and domestic institutions, foreign and domestic high net worth individuals, and family offices as well as domestic retail investors. Asia Securities’ research is widely considered the best in the market having won the “Best Stock Broking Research Team” award in 2017 (CFA Capital Markets Awards). Its coverage comprises 60 companies and 70% of the market capitalisation of the Colombo Stock Exchange. Asia Securities is also a leading provider of Corporate Access, particularly to foreign institutional clients.