Axel Springer wins SeLoger’s takeover approval with revised €634 million bid

Axel Springer AG, Europe's largest multimedia company  has raised its bid for SeLoger.com SA, a operator of property classifieds portals in France to €634 million ($847 million) after SeLoger had rejected its earlier €566 million bid as too low.

After buying a 12.4-per cent stake in SeLoger from a group of shareholders including the founders Amal Amar and Denys Chalumeau, Axel Springer had launched  a $629 million (€566 million) public offer to buy all the shares of SeLoger.com SA in September. (See: Europe's largest publisher Axel Springer to buy SeLoger for $629 million)

In the latest offer that had been recommended by SeLoger's board, Berlin, Germany-based Axel Springer has now offered €38.05 per share in cash, an increase of €4.05 to its earlier offer of €34 per share.

The sweetened bid ended months of wrangling over the price and the legal steps taken by SeLoger to stop the takeover at a low price.

Axel Springer said that its new offer is conditional on it reaching a 50.01 per cent majority including its present 12.4 per cent stake.

SeLoger had earlier this month had said that it would hold a special shareholder meeting on 20 January aimed at seeking to limit the power of minority shareholders in order to shore up its defenses against the hostile takeover bid from Axel Springer.