Hammerson rejects Klépierre takeover bid in ‘less than 24 hours’

French real estate investment fund Klépierre has confirmed its takeover bid of Hammerson was rejected in “less than 24 hours”.

In a statement, Klépierre said on 8 March it made a proposal “on a non-adversarial basis” to the Hammerson board with the intention of starting “a constructive dialogue”. The offer was turned down in less than a day on 9 March.

Klépierre offered 615p per share –  around 40.7% higher than the Hammerson’s closing price on 16 March.

In the statement Klepierre said the proposal “does not constitute an offer or impose any obligation on Klépierre to make an offer, nor does it evidence a firm intention to make an offer within the meaning of the Code. Accordingly, there can be no certainty that any offer will be made.”

Any intention of a firm offer must be tabled by 5pm on 16 April as stated in the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers. Following news of the proposal Hammerson’s shares jumped nearly 27% to 554p.

Hammerson, which owns 37 shopping centres and retail parks across the UK, Ireland and France, including London’s Brent Cross and Birmingham’s Bullring, is believed to have turned down the reported £5bn offer because it threatens a proposed merger with Intu.

In December, Hammerson confirmed it had made a £3.4bn offer for rival Intu to create a £21bn portfolio of retail developments across Europe.

The deal would mean Hammerson shareholders will own 55% of the combined firm with Intu investors owning the remainder. The merged group would be led by Hammerson chief executive David Atkins and Timon Drakesmith, the firm’s chief financial officer.