Verizon MCI Not Done Deal
|
Major institutional investors in MCI, formerly WorldCom, have indicated that they might kick up a fuss over the takeover by Verizon. In particular, why a higher offer from Qwest was rejected. The MCI board had accepted $6.75bn from Verizon. Qwest had reportedly offered $7.3bn. John Berkowitz, president of Short Hils told Bloomberg that the offer was "very disappointing for MCI owners." Paulson and Co and Farholme Capital Management are also holding out. Between the 3, they control 10.5% of MCI. Qwest, also kept up the heat, querying why MCI chose the lower offer. Qwest president Richard Notebaert told Bloomberg, "We were a very good fit for MCI or we would not have made the proposals as strong as they were. How do you argue leaving a billion of cash? That's a lot of money to leave on the table." "Ironically the whole takeover battle is played out against the backdrop of the Bernie Ebbers trial. Last week former WorldCom CFO, Scott Sullivan testified that a similar takeover bid by Verizon was scuttled. The reason was that Verizon might discover the massive fraud which led to the company's collapse.
|
Related Articles
Similar Areas Mergers and Acquisitions Items Selected Books Keywords
|