Officials from the Metro Cash and Carry confirmed that they were in talks for a merger with Makro Habib. Metro officials implied that they were in advanced stages of the negotiation since they mentioned that the merger would be subject to the approval of the State Bank of Pakistan. SBP approval would only become a concern once both parties had agreed on the initial outlines of an agreement.
It was not immediately clear which party would act as the buyer in the deal, nor which investment banks are acting as advisors to both parties.
Analysts view the consolidation as good for both companies. Khurram Shehzad, the head of equity research at Invest Capital, an investment bank, said that the merger would allow both companies to take advantage of their synergies.
The Germany-based Metro Cash and Carry has five wholesale outlets in Pakistan, two in Lahore and one each in Karachi, Islamabad and Faisalabad and has been operating since 2007. Makro Habib Pakistan – a joint venture between the Dutch wholesale giant Makro and the Pakistani conglomerate House of Habib – also has five stores, three in Karachi and two in Lahore and began operations in 2005.
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