Larry Ribstein approvingly cites Holman Jenkins’ argument today’s WSJ that a good, old-fashioned hostile takeover bid would have prevented Lord Black of Crossharbour from using Hollinger as his personal piggy bank:
“In Black’s case, it might have been necessary to pay him, the controlling shareholder, to get him out of the way. But an active takeover market might have reduced the necessary payment and, as Jenkins suggests, avoided the awful mess that Hollinger has become.”
A quick search of TheDeal.com archives reveals at least 15 unwanted bids in the last six months. The CEOs of such prominent targets as Delta, Aer Lingus, Cbot, Scania and Salton might consider the current market fairly “active.”
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