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Volkswagen-Porsche merger further delayed

September 9, 2011

The management team at Volkswagen are “urgently” examining “potential courses of action” to ensure that the planned merger of the German carmaker with Porsche can go ahead, according to a spokesman for VW.

VW said this week that efforts to merge the two family-controlled companies are being hampered by legal issues relating to Porsche's failed attempt to take over Volkswagen in 2008, which saw Porsche accumulate a debt of €10 billion.

Porsche-VW merger delayed

February 24, 2011

Family-controlled German carmakers, Porsche and Volkswagen, announced on 23 February that their planned merger may not happen this year due to pending legal issues.

The two carmakers had previously revealed plans to merge by the second half of this year, but unresolved legal issues relating to a failed takeover of VW by Porsche in 2008 are likely to delay the merger.

Louis Dreyfus faces uncertain future

February 15, 2011

Family-controlled agricultural trader Louis Dreyfus’ plans for a possible merger with rival Olam International has come to an end, raising speculations about the future of the company.

Family-controlled agricultural trader Louis Dreyfus' plans for a possible merger with rival Olam International has come to an end, raising speculations about the future of the company.

Merger plans between Paris-based Louis Dreyfus and Singapore-based Olam, first announced in September 2010, have been reported to have collapsed due to over differing views on how to grow the business. Analysts say that a merger between the two would have created the world's third-largest agricultural trading house, with an estimated market value of between $15 and $18 billion.

Comcast gains approval for merger

January 20, 2011

Family-controlled media company Comcast announced on 20 January that it has won the approval of US regulators for its merger with NBC Universal, a deal that was first announced more than a year back.

Comcast will acquire 51% of NBCU, with the remaining being retained by General Electric, which will sell it to Comcast over seven years.

Lawsuit against Porsche dismissed

January 4, 2011

A $2 billion-plus lawsuit filed against family-controlled automobile giant Porsche was dismissed by a US federal judge on 30 December 2010.

Porsche was being sued by 39 hedge funds for lying over its intentions towards Volkswagen. Specifically, they claimed Porsche disguised its intentions to takeover VW at the end of 2008.

Louis Dreyfus in merger discussions with Olam

September 27, 2010

Louis Dreyfus, the family-owned French conglomerate, is in preliminary discussions with supply-chain management company Olam over business collaboration and a possible merger.

Olam made the announcement in a letter to shareholders on 24 September in response to press speculation yesterday concerning Louis Dreyfus. The statement went on to stress that the discussions "are still preliminary" and that "the possible collaboration may not even proceed," the letter read.

Families come together to form 11th largest airline

August 16, 2010

Two family business dynasties have come together to form a new airline in South America in a move designed to take advantage of the growing demand for air travel in the region.

Two family business dynasties have come together to form a new airline in South America in a move designed to take advantage of the growing demand for air travel in the region.

The Cueto family, who own around 34% of LAN of Chile, and the Amaro family, who have a similar holding in Tam of Brazil, will together control around 38% of the new airline, called Latam Airline Group, making them the group's largest shareholders. The Cueto family will have the largest stake of the new airline, at 24%.

Reliance Comms reduces debt, gears up for future growth

June 29, 2010

Anil Ambani’s Reliance Communications company has agreed an $11 billion deal to create the world’s largest independent telecom infrastructure company.

Anil Ambani's Reliance Communications company has agreed an $11 billion deal to create the world's largest independent telecom infrastructure company.

Reliance Infratel, a subsidiary of Reliance Communications, will merge its tower assets with GTL Infrastructure, part of Global group and the largest independent tower company in India.

As part of the deal, Reliance Infratel will retain its ownership of India's largest optic fibre network of over 200,000km and related assets, and gain free listed shares in the merged entity.

Ed Lazar & Charlie Grace Jr: When one plus one equals more than two

March 8, 2010

What could possibly convince two well-established, independent and family-owned enterprises to take on the ordeal of combining two family offices into one?

Consolidate to survive?

March 8, 2010

2009 closed with two notable family office mergers. Is a new era of consolidation unfolding or do family offices require more creative solutions to succeed?

The volatility in global asset prices and the regulatory response to that volatility has lit a torch paper under the family office model. Almost every family has had to assess, to some extent, whether the model they have in place proved sufficiently robust and whether it continues fully to serve their needs. Contemplating some kind of consolidation or merger comes as part and parcel of that process, writes Cherry Reynard.