EQS-WpÜG: Tender Offer / Target company: ENCAVIS AG; Bidder: Elbe BidCo AG

NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION (IN WHOLE OR IN PART) IN, INTO OR FROM ANY JURISDICTION WHERE SUCH RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OF SUCH JURISDICTION.

 

 

Publication of the decision to issue a public
delisting tender offer pursuant to Sec. 10 para. 1 of the German Securities Acquisition and Takeover Act (WpÜG) in conjunction with Sec. 39 para. 2 sentence 3 no. 1 of the German Stock Exchange Act (BörsG)

 

 

Bidder:

Elbe BidCo AG

Wiesenhüttenstraße 11

60329 Frankfurt am Main

Germany

registered with the commercial register (Handelsregister) of the local court (Amtsgericht) of Munich under HRB 262997

 

Target:

ENCAVIS AG

Große Elbstraße 59

22767 Hamburg

Germany

registered with the commercial register of the local court (Amtsgericht) of Hamburg under HRB 63197

 

ISIN: DE0006095003 (WKN: 609500)

Today, Elbe BidCo AG ("Bidder"), a holding company controlled by investment funds, vehicles and/or accounts advised and managed by various subsidiaries of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co L.P., has decided to offer to the shareholders of ENCAVIS AG ("Encavis") by way of a public delisting tender offer ("Delisting Offer") to acquire all no-par value bearer shares in Encavis not already held by the Bidder with a proportionate interest in the share capital of EUR 1.00 per share ("Encavis Shares"). The Bidder intends to offer a cash consideration in the amount of EUR 17.50 per Encavis Share. The Bidder currently holds Encavis Shares amounting to approx. 87.73% of the share capital of Encavis.

Also today, the Bidder and Encavis have entered into a delisting agreement and agreed, subject to customary conditions, that Encavis will apply for the revocation of the admission to trading of the Encavis Shares on the regulated market of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and Hamburg Stock Exchange prior to the expiration of the acceptance period of the Delisting Offer and that Encavis will take all reasonable steps and actions to end any inclusion of Encavis Shares in the open market (Freiverkehr).

The Delisting Offer will not be subject to completion conditions.

The offer document for the Delisting Offer (in German and a non-binding English translation) and further information on the Delisting Offer will be published and available on the internet at www.elbe-offer.com.

Important Information:

This announcement is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell Encavis Shares. The final terms of the Delisting Offer as well as other provisions relating to the Delisting Offer will be communicated in the offer document after the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht) has permitted the publication of the offer document. The Bidder reserves the right to deviate from the key items presented here in the final terms and conditions of the Delisting Offer to the extent legally permissible. Investors and holders of Encavis Shares are strongly advised to read the offer document and all other documents relating to the Delisting Offer as soon as they have been made public, as they will contain important information. The offer document for the Delisting Offer (in German and a non-binding English translation) with the detailed terms and conditions and other information on the Delisting Offer will be published after approval by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht) amongst other information on the internet at www.elbe-offer.com.

The Delisting Offer will be implemented exclusively on the basis of the applicable provisions of German law, in particular the German Stock Exchange Act (Börsengesetz – BörsG), the German Securities Acquisition and Takeover Act (Wertpapiererwerbs- und Übernahmegesetz - WpÜG), and certain securities law provisions of the United States of America relating to cross-border delisting or takeover offers. The Delisting Offer will not be conducted in accordance with the legal requirements of jurisdictions other than the Federal Republic of Germany or the United States of America (as applicable). Accordingly, no notices, filings, approvals or authorizations for the Delisting Offer have been filed, caused to be filed or granted outside the Federal Republic of Germany or the United States of America (as applicable). Investors and holders of Encavis Shares cannot rely on being protected by the investor protection laws of any jurisdiction other than the Federal Republic of Germany or the United States of America (as applicable). Subject to the exceptions described in the offer document and, where applicable, any exemptions to be granted by the respective regulatory authorities, no delisting offer will be made, directly or indirectly, in those jurisdictions in which this would constitute a violation of applicable law. This announcement may not be released or otherwise distributed in whole or in part, in any jurisdiction in which the Delisting Offer would be prohibited by applicable law.

The Bidder reserves the right, to the extent permitted by law, to directly or indirectly acquire additional Encavis Shares outside the Delisting Offer on or off the stock exchange, provided that such acquisitions or arrangements to acquire are not made in the United States, will comply with the applicable German statutory provisions, in particular the BörsG and the WpÜG, and the Offer Price is increased in accordance with the WpÜG, to match any consideration paid outside of the Offer if higher than the Offer Price. If such acquisitions take place, information on such acquisitions, including the number of Encavis Shares acquired or to be acquired and the consideration paid or agreed, will be published without undue delay if and to the extent required under the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany, the United States or any other relevant jurisdiction. The Delisting Offer announced in this announcement will relate to shares in a German company admitted to trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and Hamburg Stock Exchange and will be subject to the disclosure requirements, rules and practices applicable to companies listed in the Federal Republic of Germany, which differ from those of the United States and other jurisdictions in certain material respects. This announcement has been prepared in accordance with German style and practice for the purposes of complying with the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany. The financial information relating to the Bidder and Encavis included elsewhere, including in the offer document, will be prepared in accordance with provisions applicable in the Federal Republic of Germany and will not be prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States; therefore, it may not be comparable to financial information relating to United States companies or companies from other jurisdictions outside the Federal Republic of Germany. The Delisting Offer will be made in the United States pursuant to Section 14(e) of, and Regulation 14E under, the Exchange Act, and on the basis of the so-called Tier II exemption from certain requirements of the Exchange Act, which exemption allows a bidder to comply with certain substantive and procedural rules of the Exchange Act for delisting or takeover bids by complying with the law or practice of the domestic legal system and exempts the bidder from complying with certain other rules of the Exchange Act, and otherwise in accordance with the requirements of the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany. Shareholders from the United States should note that Encavis is not listed on a United States securities exchange, is not subject to the periodic requirements of the Exchange Act and is not required to, and does not, file any reports with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

Any contract entered into with the Bidder as a result of the acceptance of the planned Delisting Offer will be governed exclusively by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be difficult for shareholders from the United States (or from elsewhere outside of Germany) to enforce certain rights and claims arising in connection with the Delisting Offer under United States federal securities laws (or other laws they are acquainted with) since the Bidder and Encavis are located outside the United States (or the jurisdiction where the shareholder resides), and their respective officers and directors reside outside the United States (or the jurisdiction where the shareholder resides). It may not be possible to sue a non-United States company or its officers or directors in a non-United States court for violations of United States securities laws. It also may not be possible to compel a non-United States company or its subsidiaries to submit themselves to a United States court’s judgment.

To the extent that this document contains forward-looking statements, they are not statements of fact and are identified by the words "intend", "will" and similar expressions. These statements express the intentions, beliefs or current expectations and assumptions of the Bidder and the persons acting jointly with it. Such forward-looking statements are based on current plans, estimates and projections made by the Bidder and the persons acting jointly with it to the best of their knowledge, but are not guarantees of future accuracy (this applies in particular to circumstances beyond the control of the Bidder or the persons acting jointly with it). Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and are usually beyond the Bidder's control or the control of the persons acting jointly with it. It should be taken into account that actual results or consequences in the future may differ materially from those indicated or contained in the forward-looking statements. It cannot be ruled out that the Bidder and the persons acting jointly with it will change their intentions and estimates stated in documents or notifications or in the offer document yet to be published after publication of the documents, notifications or the offer document.

Frankfurt am Main, 6 December 2024

Elbe BidCo AG