Qatari Bid For Canary Wharf Owner Songbird Wins More Support

The Qatari-led group attempting a takeover of Songbird Estates, owner of the Canary Wharf financial district in London, said another shareholder had pledged support to take total acceptances to nearly a third of the company’s free float.

Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and its bidding partner, U.S. investor Brookfield Property Partners, launched a 350 pence-a-share offer direct to Songbird shareholders last Thursday, valuing the company at $4 billion.

That hostile move had followed the rejection of an earlier 295 pence-a-share bid. Songbird has said that both offers undervalued the group but has yet to formally reject the second bid.

EMS Capital, which holds 3.2 per cent of Songbird’s free float, or 0.7 per cent of its total issued share capital, said in a letter to the bidders that it intended to accept the latest offer.

“Taken together with the letter of intention from Madison International Realty announced on Dec. 8, QIA and Brookfield have so far received public support from holders of approximately 31.6 per cent of Songbird’s free float,” the bidders said in a statement.