Vocus receives $2.1 billion acquisition proposal from private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts

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Vocus receives $2.1 billion acquisition proposal from private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts

Vocus has received a proposal from US private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co (KKR) to acquire 100 percent of its shares.

KKR's offer is for $3.50 cash per share, which translates to just over a $2.1 billion acquisition for Vocus.

The preliminary proposal doesn't necessarily mean Vocus will receive an offer, though the board of directors said it was assessing the deal.

The proposal is subject to several conditions including due diligence to KKR's satisfaction, availability of financing, unanimous recommendation from the Vocus board and entry into a definitive scheme implementation agreement between the parties. Further conditions would include shareholder and court approvals and other regulatory approvals.

Vocus's shares have had a rocky few months, losing half of their value in six months. The telco downgraded its profit in November and again last month by another 20 percent. Shares were sitting at $2.86 each at the opening of trading this morning, compared to $5.76 in November.

In Australia, the Vocus Group is behind consumer brands Dodo and iPrimus and SMB brand Commander, which is a result of the M2 Group acquisition.

In July 2015, Vocus acquired Perth-based solutions provider Amcom and most recently, it acquired Nextgen Networks for $860 million. 

The company expects revenues of $1.8 billion for the 2017 financial year and underlying EBITDA between $365 million and $375 million.

Vocus has already formed an independent board committee to review the proposal which includes chairman David Spence and non-executive directors Jon Brett, Craig Farrow, Robert Mansfield and Rhoda Phillippo.

The company has appointed Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs as its financial advisors and Allens as its legal advisor.

KKR is a US-headquartered multinational private equity firm founded in 1976 that specialises in leverage buyouts.

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