Ascent Bridge, formerly known as AEI Corp, says its proposed acquisitions with Octopus Global Holdings Pte. Ltd. (OGHPL) and Octopus Investment Pte. Ltd. (OIPL) are not going through.
OGHPL and OIPL are mainly in the business of the distribution of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks and liquor in Singapore and Malaysia.
This is because the conditions stipulated in the agreements entered into were not fulfilled or waived as at the long-stop date of Dec 21. The agreements have “therefore lapsed” and the company will be retrieving its refundable deposit of $5 million.
On April 22, Ascent Bridge entered into share purchase agreements (SPAs) with OGHPL and OIPL. Under the SPAs, Ascent Bridge was supposed to acquire 80% of the shares in Octopus Distribution Networks Pte. Ltd. and Cape Exim Pte. Ltd. for $57.8 million from OGHPL. It was also supposed to acquire a 39.2% stake in Malaysia-incorporated Luen Heng F&B Sdn. Bhd for a consideration of $19.3 million from OIPL.
Shares in Ascent Bridge, which is in the SGX-ST’s watch-list, closed flat at 79 cents on Dec 22.
