Merrill Lynch completed the first accelerated block trade out of Thailand after Wednesday's close December 1, raising Bt2.7 billion $70 million for True Corp, formerly known as TelecomAsia. The 398 million new share deal was marketed at Bt6.3 to Bt6.8 and priced at Bt6.8, which represents a 7.5% discount to the stock's close of Bt7.35.
The transaction faced a number of challenges, but managed to attract demand of $275 million, with participation by 54 accounts. However, the true deal size was just $38 million as the controlling shareholder - Charoen Pokphand - subscribed to 174 million shares to maintain its stake at 43.69%. Existing shareholders will be diluted by...
