ZF Withdraws All-Cash Offer For Haldex

ZF Friedrichshafen AG, through its wholly owned subsidiary ZF International B.V., announced today that it has withdrawn its recommended public cash offer to the shareholders of Haldex Aktiebolag. The increased offer of SEK 120 in cash per Haldex share had been made public on Sept. 16.

The acceptance period for the offer ended on Oct. 3. As of this date, ZF’s offer has been accepted by shareholders representing 4,238,980 shares or 9.59% of the total share capital in Haldex, ZF said.

The offer was conditional upon being accepted by Haldex’s shareholders to such an extent that ZF would become the owner of shares representing more than 50% of Haldex’s total share capital, ZF said. As this condition has not been satisfied, ZF said it has decided to no longer pursue the offer.

ZF said it recognizes the decision of Haldex shareholders not to accept the recommended offer and remains committed to the success of Haldex. With total shareholdings in Haldex of 21.67%, ZF is now the biggest shareholder in Haldex, the company said.

“We look forward to constructive talks with the other shareholders of Haldex over the future development of the company,” said Dr. Stefan Sommer, CEO of ZF. “We will stay true to our Strategy 2025. To meet future megatrends of the industry, we will continue to invest in and expand ZF’s diverse product portfolio. However, we do not depend on any single acquisition to achieve those aims.”

Any Haldex shares tendered already will not be acquired by ZF and will remain in the respective holder’s ownership, ZF said, and shareholders do not need to take any further action.