On 10 January, the High Court of Hong Kong sanctioned without modification the proposal for the privatisation of Sinotrans Shipping Limited, the company informed in an official statement. The High Court also confirmed the capital reduction of the company provided for by the Scheme of Arrangement.
The privatization came on the table in September when Sinotrans proposed a scheme of arrangement and withdrawal of the company’s listing. The decision was a result from the company’s poor performance, in light of the US and China tensions in last year and slow performance of the global market.
As such, subject to the registration of the order of the High Court, the minute and the return by the Registrar of Companies of Hong Kong, and the fulfillment or waiver of the remaining Conditions, the Effective Date of the Scheme of Arrangement is expected to be postponed from Friday, 11 January to Tuesday, 15 January 2019.
As stated in the Scheme Document, subject to the registration of the order of the High Court, the minute and the return by the Registrar of Companies of Hong Kong, and the fulfilment or waiver (as applicable) of the remaining Conditions, cheques for payment of the Cancellation Consideration under the Proposal will be despatched to the Scheme Shareholders as soon as possible until Tuesday, 22 January.
There will be no change to the expected date of despatch of the cheques due to the change of the Effective Date of the Scheme of Arrangement.
Shareholders and potential investors should be aware that the implementation of the Proposal is subject to the Conditions being fulfilled or waived, as applicable, and therefore the Proposal may or may not be implemented and the Scheme of Arrangement may or may not become effective.
