Shareholders of De Beers Consolidated Mines (DBRSY-Q) have approved an US$18.7-billion buyout offer that would see a group led by Anglo American (AAUK-Q) take the diamond company private.
About 95% of shareholders voted in favour of the deal. Approval required at least 75% of the votes.
Anglo investors gave the deal the go-ahead on May 4.
The bidder is DB Investments, a partnership of Anglo (45%), the Oppenheimer family (45%) and Debswana Diamond, the Botswana-based operating company jointly owned by De Beers and the government of Botswana. They recently sweetened their original bid by US$2 per share for the benefit of minority shareholders who were holding out for a better deal.
Anglo currently has a 32% stake in De Beers, the Oppenheimers have 2% and Debswana holds 5%. In turn, De Beers holds 35% of Anglo. The transaction will eliminate the crossover in shareholdings between De Beers and Anglo.
The sweetened deal offered shareholders 0.446 of an Anglo share and US$15.35 in cash for each De Beers share, compared with 0.43 of a share and US$14.40 in cash under the original offer.
The offer includes a US$1 special De Beers dividend and an Anglo final dividend of US$1.30 per share received.
Two U.S. investment houses, Brandes Investment Partners and Southeastern Asset Management, controlled the voting of about 10% of the outstanding De Beers shares. They stated publicly that the original offer was too low. A third institutional firm, Old Mutual Asset Managers, with 8% of the shares, was regarded as a possible swing vote.
The acquisition will make Anglo the largest mining concern in the world.
In afternoon trading on the Nasdaq, De Beers shares were off 84 at US$45.48 and Anglo shares were off 54 at US$16.96. De Beers shares are also traded at exchanges in London and South Africa. They will be delisted June 1.
De Beers expects the deal to wrap up June 8.
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