Only Agrokor and Mid Europa Partners submitted offers for Mercator

Only Agrokor and the Mid Europa Partners Fund have submitted binding bids for the purchase of 53% Mercator stake, Slovenian media citing unofficial information published on Monday.

Deadline for submission of binding bids expired on Friday (May 10), CVC Capital and Bain Capital funds which submitted non-binding bids and participated in the business review of the largest Slovenian retailer did not submit bids, Delo, Dnevnik and business magazine Finance reports. There is no official information and on Tuesday, Mercator supervisory board will be introduced to the received bids which are below the owner’s expectations.

According to the unofficial information Delo reports, Agrokor based its offer on Mercator market share price on the Ljubljana Stock Exchange which totals some EUR 110, while Mid Europa Partners opted for different approach and did not stated price, but it only offered recapitalization of Mercator.

The offer of the financial fund is more convenient for Mercator and Agrokor’s one to the retail chain owners, including Nova Ljubljanska Banka (NLB) and Pivovarna Lasko (PL), which must be discharged. Delo adds that owners of 53% of the offered shares are now on the move, who will have to decide whether two offers are attractive enough to continue negotiations with one or both potential buyers.

Ljubljana’s Dnevnik states that the offers are below expectations, and that Agrokor’s offer is "demeaning” and "frivolous" and with ambiguous financial structure since it was delivered without a bank guarantee along with a non-binding letter of support of funds, Blackstone and One Equity Partners.

According to the unofficial information referred to in the magazine, both Agrokor’s and Mid Europa’s offers are “significantly different" from the consortium owner’s expectations.

Therefore, “it cannot be neglected that they will halt the sales procedures”, Ljubljana-based Dnevnik reports.