Maple Prepared to Extend TMX Bid Past Jan. 31 Pending Approvals
January 20, 2012, 5:36 PM ESTBy Doug Alexander
Jan. 20 (Bloomberg) -- Maple Group Acquisition Corp., comprised of 13 Canadian financial-services firms, will extend its C$3.73 billion ($3.69 billion) offer for TMX Group Inc. past a Jan. 31 deadline if it hasn’t received regulatory approvals to buy Canada’s main equities and derivatives markets.
The Oct. 30 agreement between Maple and TMX says that if conditions aren’t satisfied by the offer expiry date, “Maple shall be required to extend the expiry time.” The tender offer to buy at least 70 percent of TMX shares can be extended up to April 30, according to the agreement.
“It’s clear that if all of the approvals haven’t been approved by Jan. 31, the offer will be extended,” Maple spokesman Peter Block said today in a telephone interview. “We’re in discussions with all the regulators to get the necessary approvals on the transaction.”
Maple, whose members include Toronto-Dominion Bank, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Manulife Financial Corp., has extended its offer three times since proposing to buy the Toronto Stock Exchange owner in May. Maple intends to buy 100 percent of TMX and integrate it with Canada’s securities clearinghouse and Alpha Group, a bank-owned alternative trading venue that competes with TMX.
The plan requires approval from provincial regulators and Canada’s Competition Bureau, which said Nov. 29 that it has “serious concerns” about the plan.
Maple will update investors on the transaction by the end of the month, Block said. TMX spokeswoman Carolyn Quick declined to comment.
--Editors: Nick Baker, Joanna Ossinger
To contact the reporter on this story: Doug Alexander in Toronto at dalexander3@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Baker at nbaker7@bloomberg.net
