What happened
Following the termination of a tender offer, shares of Russian payment service provider Qiwi (QIWI 9.88%) have tumbled, falling about 9% as of 3:00 p.m. EDT.
So what
On June 19, Otkritie Holding JSC and Otkritie Investment Cyprus Limited commenced a tender offer to buy up to 24,794,253 shares of Qiwi for $28 per share, a significant premium to the then-current share price. If successful, the offer would have given the two would-be buyers a majority stake in Qiwi, effectively taking the company private.
The tender offer expired at midnight on Friday, July 14, and at that time, only 12,539,256 shares had been tendered, significantly less than the minimum of 20,286,207 that Otkritie required in order to proceed. As a result, the offer has been terminated, according to a press release from Otkritie.
Image source: Getty Images.
If the tender offer had been successful, and the full amount of nearly 24.8 million shares had been tendered, it would have given the offerors a 63.85% stake in the company -- a majority stake, and the control that comes with it.
Now what
The offer on the table helped prop up the stock price. Given it has expired, and there isn't a good chance for Oktritie to obtain a majority stake in Qiwi in the immediate future, the market is reacting negatively.
However, it's important to point out that this doesn't mean that the offer, or a similar one, won't materialize later. According to an SEC filing by the two offerors, "Given that the minimum condition was not satisfied and the offer has been terminated, the offerors intend to continue to review their investment in Qiwi and may, at any time, acquire additional securities in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions, with or without prior notice."
