SF Holding Co (順豐控股), one of the largest Chinese logistics firms, is seeking to acquire control of Malaysian billionaire Robert Kuok’s (郭鶴年) Kerry Logistics Network Ltd (嘉里物流) in a HK$17.6 billion (US$2.3 billion) deal for its global expansion.
The Chinese courier plans to buy a 51.8 percent stake in Hong Kong-listed Kerry Logistics at HK$18.8 per share, according to a joint statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange released yesterday.
Kerry Logistics also plans to sell some warehouse assets for HK$13.5 billion and its Taiwan business for NT$4.5 billion (US$158.5 million) to its parent company, the statement said.
Photo: Billy H.C. Kwok, Bloomberg
Kerry Logistics proposes a special dividend of HK$7.28 per share conditional on the completion of the warehouses sale.
Shareholders who accept SF Holding’s offer would receive HK$26.08 including the special dividend, representing an 11 percent premium to the last closing price.
Kuok, who is Malaysia’s richest person, controls Kerry Logistics through his family holding company Kerry Group (郭氏集團) and its Hong Kong-listed real estate arm Kerry Properties Ltd (嘉里建設).
SF Holding would offer cash for the Kerry Logistics stake and plans to keep the company listed in Hong Kong. After the transaction, Kerry Properties’ holding in the logistics firm would be cut to about 20 percent from 40 percent.
“The deal demonstrated the Kuok family’s vote of confidence to SF Holding and to myself,” SF Holding chairman Dick Wong (王衛) said in a news briefing. “While Kerry Group gave us the control of the company, we’ll still jointly manage Kerry Logistics together in the future.”
SF Holding shares jumped by their 10 percent limit on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange after trading resumed.
Kerry Logistics climbed as much as 10.5 percent to a record high in Hong Kong, while Kerry Properties gained as much as 19 percent in its biggest intraday advance since May 2009.
The deal would help SF Holding boost its distribution network and supply-chain services as it gains a footprint across Asia.
Kerry Logistics would become the Chinese courier’s primary vehicle for international expansion.
SF Holding’s shares have more than doubled over the past 12 months, helping the company surpass FedEx Corp in value and giving it a market capitalization of about US$83 billion.
The Chinese group owns courier service SF Express, which has benefited from the rise in online shopping in China fueled by companies like Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (阿里巴巴) and JD.com Inc (京東).
In 2019, SF Holding completed the acquisition of Deutsche Post DHL Group’s supply chain assets in China for 5.5 billion yuan (US$854 million at the current exchange rate).
JPMorgan Chase & Co is the financial adviser to SF Holding, while the Kerry Group companies have Citigroup Inc as their financial adviser.
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
Taiwan’s food delivery market could undergo a major shift if Singapore-based Grab Holdings Ltd completes its planned acquisition of Delivery Hero SE’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan, industry experts said. Grab on Monday last week announced it would acquire Foodpanda’s Taiwan operations for US$600 million. The deal is expected to be finalized in the second half of this year, with Grab aiming to complete user migration to its platform by the first half of next year. A duopoly between Uber Eats and Foodpanda dominates Taiwan’s delivery market, a structure that has remained intact since the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) blocked Uber Technologies Inc’s
RSS