The group set up to handle a £93m management buy-out at pub operator Yates has extended the deadline of its offer for a second time after failing to win enough support from shareholders.
Thorium, the buy-out vehicle created by Yates’ management team and private equity firm GI Partners, has received support from holders of 23.6% of Yates’ share capital, representing some 44.5% of shareholders by number.
The group needs to win acceptance from holders of at least 90% of the company’s shares to proceed.
It has been suggested that some shareholders are holding out for a better offer than Thorium’s 140p-a-share bid.
However, a spokesman for Yates confirmed that there was no one else about to make a bid, and that the board continued to view the Thorium bid as a “full and fair value offer”.
Rival pub chain Laurel made it clear last month that it had looked at the company and decided not to make a bid.
The new deadline for accepting Thorium’s offer is 3pm on Friday, 22 July.
by Angela Frewin
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