The board of Hipgnosis has agreed a $1.4bn cash takeover offer from Nashville-based music rights company Concord Music.
In an update this morning (April 18), Concord, which is controlled by Alchemy Copyrights, said it would buy Hipgnosis with shareholders to receive $1.16 (93.2p) in cash for each share.
Robert Naylor, chair of Hipgnosis said the deal is “an attractive opportunity for our shareholders to immediately realise their holding at a premium”.
He added: “At the same time, the board is confident that Concord, one of the world’s leading independent music companies, is the right owner to take on the Hipgnosis catalogue and manage it in the interests of composers and performers.”
The deal needs approval by the regulator and Hipgnosis shareholders.
Bob Valentine, CEO of Concord said: “We are pleased to be announcing this offer for Hipgnosis, which has been unanimously recommended by its board and has the support of 29.38 per cent of their shareholders.
“We believe we are offering a fair price for Hipgnosis’ catalogues and music assets, giving its shareholders the opportunity to realise their investment at a significant premium to the prevailing share price in cash.
“Concord is the world's leading independent music company, with extensive experience in developing, producing, and marketing recordings and songs around the world in order to maximise their value.
“We believe we can integrate Hipgnosis’ catalogues into our wider portfolio of 1.2mn songs in a way that will deliver benefits for composers, performers and all our stakeholders."
Back in October, shareholders voted for the £1bn trust to be wound down.
In a meeting at the time, 82.3 per cent of Hipgnosis Songs Fund shareholders voted against the fund remaining open.
This meant the company had to work on proposals for the reconstruction, reorganisation or winding-up of the company.
amy.austin@ft.com
