Battle for Canary Wharf: Songbird Estates board caves to Qatari bid
After a long, drawn-out battle, the board of Songbird Estates, the company behind Canary Wharf, has finally recommended a 350p-per-share offer by a joint venture between the Qatari sovereign wealth fund and Brookfield Property Partners to its shareholders.
The board said that, as of 1pm today, the Qatar Investment Authority and Brookfield Property Partners had received valid acceptances from 64.8 per cent of shareholders. On top of that, the Qataris own 28.6 per cent of shares, meaning the percentage of shareholders in favour of the offer amounted to 93.4 per cent.
Songbird said the offer was likely to be declared unconditional "on or before 12 February". Accordingly, it recommended shareholders accept the offer.
Earlier this week three major shareholders – Glick, China Investment Corporation and a fund managed by Morgan Stanley – declared their intentions to accept the offer.
The takeover panel has extended the deadline for the offer to 12 February, meaning the Qataris have two weeks to perform the necessary due diligence.