Apparently 1066 wasn't big enough in the cross-channel asset-grabbing biz..
From The Financial Times, September 23:
French buyers snapped up a slew of British assets on Wednesday, from a slice of the UK’s biggest telecoms group to a buyout of one of the country’s oldest technology companies, underlining how overseas acquirers are taking advantage of depressed valuations.
Entrepreneur Xavier Niel bought a 2.5 per cent stake in Vodafone; Schneider Electric agreed to buy Aveva for £9.5bn; and Suez moved to buy back its British waste-treatment business for around $2.3bn.
The UK is experiencing relatively high inflation, low investment confidence and a weaker currency, making it an attractive moment for European suitors to pounce on struggling British assets.
A top-25 shareholder in Aveva described the Schneider bid as “yet another example of a world-leading UK-listed company whose share price has been smashed to pieces being taken over”. Aveva’s shares have fallen 23 per cent in the past 12 months.
“As a beleaguered shareholder we can accept it — just — through gritted teeth. But it’s emblematic of what we’ve been having to deal with,” they said. “There is a massive ownership shift going on as the traditional owners of UK plc sell out to corporates, sovereign wealth funds and private equity, who can take advantage of the mispricing of UK equities.”...
....MUCH MORE
note: this action took place before Friday's big bang.
