// THG and Japanese giant SoftBank have walked away from the $1.6 billion deal to buy a near 20% stake in THG Ingenuity
// A SoftBank division took the option to buy the 19.9% holding last May
THG and Japanese investment giant SoftBank have abandoned their $1.6billion deal in light of global macroeconomic conditions.
SB Management (SBM), a division of SoftBank, took an option to buy a 19.9% holding in THG Ingenuity, the retail group’s tech platform division, last May that it valued at $6.3bn.
However, the retailer said “in light of global macroeconomic conditions” the pair had mutually agreed to terminate the plan.
READ MORE: THG rejects all recent ‘undervalued’ takeover approaches
“The call option granted by THG to SBM will not therefore be, and will cease to be capable of being exercised,” it said in a stock market release.
However, THG said it had “completed the internal separation of its key trading divisions” in a move which it said offers “flexibility to enter into future strategic partnerships to generate value accretion for its stakeholders”.
The news comes as THG shares slumped to an all-time-low this month after two interested parties, property tycoon Nick Candy’s business Candy Ventures and private equity consortium Belerion Capital, opted not to buy the struggling online retail group.
THG floated at 500p in September 2020, rising 25% on the first day of trading. Share are currently trading at 70p.
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