Equifax Inc. (NYSE: EFX) confirmed that on September 17, 2015 it submitted a non-binding proposal to acquire all the outstanding shares of common stock of Veda Group Limited (ASX: VED) (“Veda”) for AUD$2.70 per share in cash in a transaction valued at approximately AUD$2.3 billion or USD$1.6 billion.
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For another, Veda’s board has yet to assess the offer, and there is no guarantee that it will recommend a bid at that price – hence why Veda’s shares at one point traded above the current offer price on hopes management would push for a better deal.
Veda went into a trading halt at 10.33am on Friday morning which was to last until Tuesday.
Veda holds credit information on about 20 million individuals and 5.7 million businesses in Australia and New Zealand.
Equifax has no meaningful presence in Australia or New Zealand, Mr. Prendergast said, adding that for it to build a business there from scratch would be costly and would take it many years to build up the necessary credit data to be considered a major rival.
Macquarie and Herbert Smith Freehills are advising Veda.
Equifax operates in the USA and 18 other nations, a lot of them in the Americas and Europe.
Her company says: “The board of directors of Veda intends to evaluate the expression of interest and will update its shareholders and the market in due course”.
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“The proposal is subject to a number of conditions including due diligence and regulatory approvals, which includes FIRB approval”, the company said in a statement. The private-equity firm in February moved to sell its remaining shares in Veda.
