KKR and Affinity Partners abandon deal to buy Vocus

Vocus Communications, one of Australia’s largest telcos, has failed to agree terms with investors who had been set to buy the company for somewhere in the region of AU$2.2bn.

America’s Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) and Asian investment giant Affinity Partners both agreed to pull out of the deal after failing to agree terms with Vocus’s board.

The two companies had tabled an offer of $3.50 per share, but talks appeared to have broken down somewhere in the diligence process.

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The revelation prompted a significant drop in Vocus share prices, which closed around 16.5% down on Friday.

Vocus Chairman David Spence said: “The process with the bidders has now concluded and the board is looking forward to working with management to deliver improved returns for shareholders over the medium- and long-term future.”

The company is forecasting revenues of between $1.9bn and $2.0bn for the year-long period ending in June 2018, with results for the past financial year to be published this week.