Telecom Italia SpA Chief Executive Officer Luigi Gubitosi offered to resign to help move along KKR & Co’s takeover offer, which has been rejected by the former monopoly’s largest shareholder, Vivendi SA.
In a letter to the board ahead of a crucial meeting on Friday, Gubitosi said stepping aside could help speed the process, which has hit a snag following KKR’s 10.8 billion-euro ($12.2 billion) overture on Nov. 21. Vivendi owns 24% of Telecom Italia and has already signaled it views the non-binding offer as too low.
In the letter seen by Bloomberg News, Gubitosi urged the appointment of financial advisers that could help the board grant KKR swift access to Telecom Italia’s books to evaluate its proposal. The U.S. company is already considering a higher offer to break Vivendi’s opposition, people familiar with the KKR’s thinking said earlier.
Teaming Up?
To succeed, KKR needs to win over multiple stakeholders. Besides Vivendi, the Italian state owns a stake via a state-owned lender, and the government has veto power. Earlier this month, KKR representatives met with government officials, who set some conditions linked to Telecom Italia’s network, the company’s main asset that has national significance and should therefore remain in Italy’s hands.
Prime Minister Mario Draghi hasn’t yet given his consent to the KKR offer, or indeed any offer, and the government is monitoring the situation and the impact on jobs, the network and technology, a spokesman said on Thursday.
The French company has itself considered ousting Gubitosi, people familiar with the matter said previously. Representative for Vivendi requested an update of the meeting agenda to discuss corporate governance, a person familiar with the company’s thinking said. Spokespeople for Telecom Italia and Vivendi declined to comment ahead of the meeting.
To help shoulder the financial burden of Europe’s biggest-ever leveraged buyout, KKR is considering teaming up with CVC Capital Partners, people with knowledge of the matter said. The two investment firms have held exploratory talks about the potential for a joint offer, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is confidential.
Including Telecom Italia’s 22 billion euros of net debt, a takeover of the company would rank as Europe’s biggest-ever private equity buyout, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
While KKR is studying whether to bring in a partner, the firm’s focus remains on its existing proposal, the people said. It has the ability to finance the offer on its own and could also rope in some of its fund’s limited partners as co-investors, according to the people.
精彩评论