America Movil plans €7.2 billion KPN bid

Latin American telco America Movil has announced plans to make a €7.2 billion bid for all issued and outstanding shares in KPN in the Netherlands.

Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim’s America Movil already owns 30% of KPN and the new €2.40 per-share offer for the remaining 70% marks a 35.4% premium over the firm’s closing price in the last 30 days.

In a statement, America Movil said it plans to buy the majority stake in the business to “facilitate greater operational cooperation and co-ordination between the two companies, to exploit all areas for potential partnerships and to intensify the realisation of synergy potential for both companies.”

America Movil first bought into KPN more than a year ago and was its first investment outside the Americas as part of its efforts to “achieve geographical diversification and create attractive long-term returns for its shareholders.”

The firm has since bought a minority stake in Telekom Austria and recently invested US$40 million (€46 million) in Second screen app and media recognition specialist Shazam.

The KPN takeover bid comes after KPN announced last month that, subject to shareholder approval, it would sell its German subsidiary E-Plus to Telefonica Deutschland in exchange for €5 billion in cash and a 17.6% stake in Telefonica Deutschland.

“América Móvil is carefully evaluating the merits of the proposed transaction and will make a final determination in relation to the exercise of its voting rights  at  the  upcoming Extraordinary General Meeting of KPN,” said America Movil.

In a statement confirming America Movil’s planned offer, KPN said that it will “carefully consider” the intended bid and “expects to convene an extraordinary general meeting related to the sale of E-Plus to Telefónica Deutschland in the coming weeks.”

America Movil said it intends to submit an offer memorandum to the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets, following which it will place its bid. It said it expects this to take place during September.