Offer Update
CLS Holdings PLC
26 September 2000
NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION IN WHOLE OR
IN PART IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA OR
JAPAN
CLS Holdings plc ('CLS') - recommended merger offer (the
'Merger Offer') for Citadel Holdings plc ('Citadel')
Acceptance level update and closure of Merger Offer
The board of CLS announces that the Merger Offer closed at
3.00 p.m. on 25 September 2000.
As at 3.00 p.m. on 25 September 2000, CLS owns and has
received acceptances of the Merger Offer in respect of
33,111,051 Citadel Shares, representing 98.8 per cent of
the issued share capital of Citadel.
As at 3.00 p.m. on 25 September 2000, CLS had received
valid acceptances of the Merger Offer in respect of a
total of 27,283,741 Citadel Shares, representing 81.4 per
cent. of the issued share capital of Citadel. Such
acceptances include acceptances received by CLS from
Citadel Shareholders who gave irrevocable undertakings and
non-binding letters of intent to accept the Merger Offer.
CLS has now received valid acceptances in respect of more
than 90 per cent. of the Citadel Shares to which the
Merger Offer relates and therefore intends to implement
the procedure under section 429 of the Companies Act 1985
to acquire compulsorily all of the outstanding Citadel
Shares in respect of which it has not received acceptance
of the Merger Offer.
Prior to the offer period, CLS had received irrevocable
undertakings to accept the Merger Offer in respect of
7,201,130 Citadel Shares, representing 21.5 per cent of
the issued share capital of Citadel. This included a
total of 7,175,861 Citadel Shares owned by CLS Directors
and their connected persons. CLS Directors and their
connected persons also held options over 230,000 Citadel
Shares. At the same date, CLS had received non-binding
letters of intent to accept the Merger Offer, in the
absence of a competing offer, from other Citadel
Shareholders in respect of 5,688,895 Citadel Shares owned
or controlled by them, representing 17.0 per cent. of the
issued share capital of Citadel.
In addition, prior to the offer period CLS already owned
5,827,310 Citadel Shares representing 17.4 per cent. of
Citadel's issued ordinary share capital. CLS also has the
ability under the CLS Warrant to subscribe for a further 8
million Citadel Shares. However, CLS has no intention of
exercising the CLS Warrant.
Save as disclosed above, neither CLS nor any subsidiary of
CLS, nor any CLS Director, nor, so far as CLS is aware,
any person acting in concert with CLS, owns or controls
any Citadel Shares, securities convertible into Citadel
Shares, rights to subscribe for Citadel Shares, options
(including traded options) in respect of Citadel Shares
and derivatives referenced to Citadel Shares. In
addition, save as disclosed above, neither CLS nor any
party deemed to be acting in concert with CLS for the
purposes of the Merger Offer has acquired or agreed to
acquire any Citadel Shares (or rights over Citadel Shares)
since the commencement of the offer period.
Enquiries:
CLS Holdings plc
Keith Harris Non-executive 020 7582 7766
Director, on behalf
of the CLS Independent
Directors
HSBC Investment Bank plc
Jonathan Gray 020 7336 9983
The CLS Directors accept responsibility for the
information contained in this announcement. To the best
of the knowledge and belief of the CLS Directors (who have
taken all reasonable care to ensure that such is the
case), the information contained in this announcement for
which they are responsible is in accordance with the facts
and does not omit anything likely to affect the import of
that information.
Definitions contained in the offer document dated 3 August
2000 apply in this announcement.
HSBC Investment Bank plc, which is regulated in the United
Kingdom by The Securities and Futures Authority Limited,
is acting exclusively for CLS Holdings plc and no-one else
in connection with the Merger Offer and will not be
responsible to anyone other than CLS Holdings plc for
providing the protections afforded to customers of HSBC
Investment Bank plc or for providing advice in relation to
the Merger Offer or any other matter referred to herein.