Royal Mail owner agrees £3.6bn takeover by ‘Czech Sphinx’ Daniel Kretinsky | Business News

The owners of Royal Mail have agreed to a £3.6bn takeover bid from Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky.

The company’s parent company, International Distribution Services (IDS), said its board of directors approved the deal after a formal offer was made earlier this month.

Kretinsky’s EP Group already owns 27.6% of the business.

Shareholders will vote on the deal at IDS’ next annual general meeting in September.

The acquisition is also expected to come under heavy scrutiny from regulators before it can proceed.

The billionaire, nicknamed the “Czech Sphinx”, reportedly due to his enigmatic nature and reluctance to speak in public, also owns parts of West Ham Football Club It is Sainsbury’s.

The offer would see EP Group buy IDS for 370 cents per share and would also include a series of “contractual commitments” to protect the public service aspects of Royal Mail.

See more information: Many are perplexed why a Czech billionaire wants to buy the owner of Royal Mail

IDS said Royal Mail would continue its “one price goes anywhere” universal first class postage service obligation six days a week under the terms of the agreement, and would also maintain the company’s brand and headquarters in UK.

The company also insisted that the employment rights of all employees would be protected and that there was “no intention to make any material changes to the total number of employees or reductions in the number of frontline workers”.

Unions and senior politicians have already raised concerns about the potential takeover of the postal service, which was privatized in 2013.

The Labor Party has previously called for a compromise for Royal Mail to remain domiciled in the UK and continue to pay tax here as part of any deal.

Reacting to Wednesday’s announcement, Shadow Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “These assurances are welcome that Royal Mail will maintain its British identity and protect its workforce without compulsory redundancies.

“Work across government will ensure these are met.”

Communication Workers Union general secretary Dave Ward said: “We welcome some of the commitments that have been made, but the reality is that postal workers across the UK have lost all faith in senior management at Royal Mail and the service was deliberately run over.

“We will meet with the EP Group next week and call for a complete reset in labor and employment relations, the restoration of postal services and new commitments on the future of the company.”

He added: “We will also engage directly with the Labor Party and other stakeholders to demand a new ownership model for Royal Mail, where our members and customers have a direct say in key decisions.”

This comes after Royal Mail introduced proposed change plans to Ofcom as part of recovery efforts, including reducing some deliveries.

O regulator also recently launched an investigation after the company said it delivered less than three-quarters of first-class mail on time last year.

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