SingTel says Cable & Wireless Optus staff will not face the guillotine under its AU$17 billion acquisition of Australia's second largest telco. Optus's brand name is also safe, for now.
"We will retain Optus's office management team," SingTel's CEO Lee Hsien Yang said while releasing a bidder's statement, which outlines a cash and share offer for C&W Optus shareholders.
While conceding that, in any acquisition there is sure to be a review of employees, Hsien Yang said: "I believe there will be increased opportunities for employment rather than reduced opportunities."
"No restructuring requirements will be made," he said during a media briefing in Sydney today.
SingTel is seeking approval of its AU$17 billion takeover of C&W Optus, 52-percent owned by Britain's Cable & Wireless.
SingTel says it will stand behind the Optus brand initially, however, it may be evaluated and reviewed over time.
C&W Optus's independent directors also announced today their support for the takeover, recommending shareholders accept the "reasonable, although not fair" bid.
Optus said in its target statement to the Australian Stock Exchange that "on balance, the independent directors recommend acceptance of SingTel's offer."
The C&W Optus Board was relying on an evaluation report by Grant Samuel & Associates.
"A comparison of Grant Samuel's valuation of Optus - AU$3.85-AU$4.42 per share - and the value attributed to the SingTel offer suggests that the SingTel offer is not fair, but is only just not fair," the report read.
For each Optus share, SingTel is offering a Share Alternative option of 1.66 SingTel shares, a Cash and Share Alternative of AU$2.25 cash and 0.8 SingTel shares, or a Cash, Share and Bond Alternative of AU$2.00 cash, AU$0.45 SingTel bonds.
SingTel said C&W Optus independent directors intended to accept the offer in their own shares by choosing the Cash and Share Alternative, one of three proposals on offer.
The Offer by SingTel will remain open to shareholders until 3 July 2001.
Assuming the acquisition goes ahead, SingTel expects to be one of the top five largest communications carrier in the Asia Pacific region, boasting a subscriber base of 11 million.
