Commander’s Volante bid to go ahead

Commander is set to steam ahead with its hostile takeover bid of rival Volante.

Today the body managing the move, the Takeovers Panel, advised the ASX that it had ruled against Volante in its recent attempt to delay Commander’s offer of $1.01 a share.

Volante in an ASX statement has argued that the Bidders Statement made to Volante’s shareholders was "riddled with errors and deficiencies" about the company and its financial performance.

The company’s CEO Ian Penman also said the issuing of a corrected statement was "sloppy work" on behalf of Commander and would only serve to "confuse Volante shareholders".

Explaining its decision, the Takeovers Panel said in an ASX statement that the ruling in Commander’s favour would be contingent on supplying Volante shareholders with a corrected Bidder’s Statement.

Commander’s bid for Volante was made 23 December last year and its offer closes 10 February.

Commander director, Adrian Coote, said its offer presented Volante shareholders with the certainty of cash in exchange for an uncertain future under Volante’s current management.

Volante’s Board has advised shareholders to take no action on the Commander offer until it issues a formal recommendation.