// Asos shares surge after acquiring Topshop, Topman and Miss Selfridge on Monday
// The stock has risen 13% after Asos paid for the brands’ goodwill and stock on hand
// Asos’ biggest shareholder is Danish billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen, who holds a stake of over £1.3bn
Asos has reportedly seen its shares rise since snapping up four brands from Sir Philip Green’s Arcadia Group.
The stock has risen 13 per cent in the two days since it sealed the £330 million deal to acquire Topshop, Topman and Miss Selfridge, This is Money reported.
Asos is currently valued at just over £5 billion – almost twice as much as Marks & Spencer at £2.7billion.
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Asos paid for the brands’ goodwill and stock on hand, and it will also take on certain liabilities for forward committed stock orders.
At least 300 employees will be transferred to Asos as the network of 70 Topshop and Miss Selfridge stores is not included in the deal – placing 2500 jobs at risk.
Arcadia Group, which also owns Burton and Dorothy Perkins, fell into administration in November, putting 13,000 jobs and over 400 shops at risk.
Asos chief executive Nick Robertson was forced to sell off £70 million of shares to fund a divorce settlement in 2016.
He sold another £15 million of shares in 2019 and a further £13.6 million in November last year, following a rise in loungewear thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Robertson remains one of the largest investors with around 3.6 million shares worth almost £169 million.
Asos’ biggest shareholder is Danish billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen, who holds a stake of more than £1.3 billion.
Povlsen also owns stakes in Zalando, and Klarna, as well as eight fashion brands through his retail empire Bestseller including Jack & Jones.
Last week, Povlsen was involved in a face off with Frasers Group boss Mike Ashley over the Jenners department store on Princes Street in Edinburgh.
Ashley said Povlsen had failed to agree to a realistic rent forcing him to shut the store with the loss of 200 jobs.
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