STRATEGIC PARTNERS
February 9, 2003
DUBLIN, Ireland -- In response to a report in the Irish Examiner, Euronet Worldwide said that it is not in takeover discussions with Alphyra Group, an Irish transaction processor that is currently the object of a proposed management buyout (MBO).
"Euronet confirmed that it did have discussions with Alphyra in the summer of 2002 regarding a possible business combination, but that these discussions had terminated months ago. Euronet regularly evaluates acquisition candidates, and it is possible that Euronet would consider a bid for Alphyra in the future under the right circumstances," according to a Euronet statement.
According to the Examiner, Michael Brown, Euronet's chief executive, reportedly said on Feb. 7 that he was interested in acquiring Alphyra. His remarks were made before the Alphyra MBO team upped their offer to €2.70 per share (about $2.89 U.S.) from an initial €2.45 (about $2.63), putting a value of €88 million (about $94.4 million) on the company.
Almost 35 percent of Alphyra shareholders have already accepted the €2.45 offer, according to the Examiner.
An Alphyra source reportedly told the Examinerthat Euronet Worldwide would need a partner in order to mount a bid for Alphyra. Euronet reported a net loss of $6.5 million in the nine months to Sept. 2002.
Alphyra chief executive John Nagle is leading the MBO offer through his Rendina vehicle. He recently said that a proposed bid from First Data Corporation (FDC) would be considered "hostile."
FDC has been planning a bid for Nagle's company for some time, according to the Examiner.
At the end of January, FDC said it was ready to bid €2.85 a share (about $3.05), some 40 cents more than the MBO team's €2.45. But FDC withdrew days later, claiming it had been unable to meet Alphyra's management team. However, Alphyra said it had met FDC and was willing to set up another meeting.
The Alphyra management team said it was confident of securing majority acceptance of its latest offer by the Feb. 19 deadline.
