Sector News

Kellogg outbids Abraaj for third time in race for Egypt’s Bisco

December 18, 2014
Consumer Packaged Goods
(Reuters) – Breakfast cereal maker Kellogg Co has again raised its bid for Egyptian snack maker Bisco Misr, outbidding private equity group Abraaj for the third time and snatching the lead in a $140 million takeover battle.
 
Kellogg said on Thursday it would improve its offer to 86.36 Egyptian pounds per share, hoping to secure a brand that will give it a high profile presence in the Arab world’s most populous nation.
 
UAE’s Abraaj Investment Management, the Middle East’s largest private equity firm, has been battling Kellogg for the Egyptian firm since last month, after the U.S. group scuppered its deal to snap up Bisco.
 
Abraaj had increased its own bid only this week to 84.66 pounds, topping a previous Kellogg offer.
 
Food is seen as a potentially lucrative sector in Egypt, with its growing population of 86 million, and Bisco Misr is a well-known brand.
 
Cairo has seen a flurry of mergers and share issues in recent months, signs of renewed investor confidence after the political and economic turmoil that followed popular uprisings in 2011.
 
Egypt’s government this year launched a raft of reforms aimed at luring back foreign investors and shoring up growth while cutting a ballooning deficit.
 
While shareholders with 56 percent of Bisco Misr had agreed to sell to Abraaj at 73.91 pounds per share, Kellogg’s bids have forced the private equity firm to return with higher offers.
 
Abraaj, which has about $7.5 billion of assets under management, targets high-growth sectors in emerging markets.
 
($1 = 7.1500 Egyptian pounds) (Reporting by Maggie Fick; Editing by David Clarke and Clara Ferreira Marques)

comments closed

Related News

April 26, 2024

Haleon names new Finance Chief and new CHRO

Consumer Packaged Goods

Consumer healthcare firm Haleon has appointed Tate & Lyle executive Dawn Allen as its new chief financial officer, effective 1 November 2024. Allen will succeed Tobias Hestler, who has decided to step down from the role, citing a long-term health condition, the company said.

April 26, 2024

Campari to double Aperol production capacity with €75m investment

Consumer Packaged Goods

The group said that the bottling line, which adds 6,500 square metres to the existing 60,700-square-metre site, is the next necessary stage in the company’s international development. The leading brand in Campari Group’s global sales, demand for the Italian bitter apéritif has grown by 500% in the last decade.

April 26, 2024

Coca-Cola enters $1.1bn strategic partnership with Microsoft

Consumer Packaged Goods

The partnership will see Coca-Cola adopt new technology to foster innovation and productivity globally. Through the deal, Coca-Cola has made a $1.1 billion commitment to the Microsoft Cloud and its generative AI capabilities.

How can we help you?

We're easy to reach