Aggregator
Finsure has signed an agreement for a proposed merger with Western Australian bank Goldfields Money. The move will come as a blow to Firstmac which
set out its own acquisition bid in October only to have it
rejected by the Goldfields board.
If successful, the move would see Goldfields merge with Finsure with individual shares valued at $1.50 – an increase from the $1.27 to $1.39 offered by Firstmac.
The directors have called the Finsure offer “transformational” for the bank while providing “substantial value” to its shareholders.
“The proposed transaction, if implemented, will result in Goldfields Money owning a fast growing national mortgage aggregation network and wholesale mortgage business,” the directors wrote in an ASX announcement last Thursday (23 November).
Shareholders have been advised to reject the Firstmac offer and will be given the opportunity to cast a simple majority vote on the Finsure offer once the Merger Implementation Agreement is brought in on 22 December.
If the vote passes, Goldfields will issue just over 40 million shares to Finsure shareholders, bringing Finsure’s equity to around $61.1m and the merged group’s equity to around $97.5m.
The Goldfields Money board will consist of independent directors with Finsure shareholders permitted to nominate one Goldfields Money director. This will be the co-founder and current managing director of Finsure John Kolenda at the invitation of the current Goldfields board.
The move will have several benefits for the firms including giving Goldfields access to Finsure’s 1,200 accredited brokers as well as a further 5,500 loan writers through
Better Choice. Goldfields’ ADI licence will also provide additional funding for
Better Choice’s wholesale loan products.
Related stories:
Local bank rejects Firstmac bid
Firstmac makes bid for local bank
Loan fintech launches recruitment drive
