SingPost Shareholders Okay Sale of Australian Business
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Global Business Magazine- 3 minutes read
Majority of the shareholders of Singapore Post Limited (SingPost) have voted in favour of the company’s decision to sell off its profit-making Australia logistics business on Thursday.
At an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) held this morning, more than 99% of eligible shareholders supported SingPost’s plans to dispose of Freight Management Holdings (FMH), one of Australia’s largest logistics providers, to Australia private equity firm Pacific Equity Partners.
SingPost’s Chairman Simon Claude Israel, Group Chief Financial Isaac Mah, Group Chief Operating Officer Neo Su Yin headed the presentation at the EGM. Mah and Neo were most recently appointed after the public firing of the three key executives in December 2024.
Israel said that following the disposal, the board has been focusing on many things including reaching an agreement with the Singapore government on the future operating model which will focus on profitability and sustainability, right sizing the cost base of SingPost, reviewing the International Logistics Business Unit, and completing the board renewal and setting parameters for the group CEO appointment.
SingPost, a leading postal and eCommerce logistics provider in Asia Pacific, expects to receive gross proceeds of about $488.28 million and a profit of around $216.75 million from the transaction with an enterprise value of $640 million for FMH, SingPost said.
The deal is expected to close by end of this month and subsequently SingPost Group will consist mainly of two business units, being Singapore and International. The remaining business of the SingPost Group will continue to be a postal and eCommerce logistics provider in Asia Pacific.
Repay Borrowings
SingPost is planning to use the proceeds to repay $227.87 million in borrowings taken to finance FMH’s acquisition. It will then pay a special dividend to shareholders, with the amount to be announced at its annual general meeting, which is held usually in July.
Given those circumstances, SingPost has guided that it will reset its strategy, but in the meantime will carry on with a review of its international logistics business.
It will continue divesting non-core assets to pare debt and free up funds for new investments. Efforts are under way to offload the SingPost Centre in Paya Lebar and the company’s freight forwarding business, Famous Holdings.
