Victor Li seizes on weak pound to snap up Greene King in £4.6bn deal

Victor Li Tzar Kuoi, the Hong Kong billionaire and son of the LI Ka-Shing acquired Greene King in the midst of weak pound to strike a £4.6bn deal for the UK’s biggest listed pubs and brewery group.

CK Asset Holdings, the property investment firm founded by Li Ka-Shing (91)  and run by Victor, his son, has agreed to buy the 20-year-old UK pub group for 850 per share, valuing it at £4.6bn including net debt, Shares in Greene King shot up more than 50 per cent.

Victor Li’s investment group was undaunted by the economic prospects for the UK after a no-deal Brexit saying it is taking a long-term view of British consumer spending.

George Colin Magnus, chairman designate of CK Bidco, the vehicle that agreed to acquire Greene King, said it accorded with a strategyof looking “ for business with stable and resilient characteristics and strong cash flow  generating capabilities”.

Greene King which was founded in 1799 and brews beers such as old Speckled Hen and Abbot Ale, has been struggling with shifting consumer trends as young people are drinking less than previous generation and also facing competition from cheap supermarket drink sales.

IN July 2019, Stonegate, the operator of the Slug and Lettuce chain acquired rival Ei Group in a £3bn deal. In 2017, Dutch brewer Heineken completed the takeover of UK pubs group Punch Taverns in a deal worth £403m.

CK Asset was a strategic investor in Greene King since 2016, when it acquired  136 pubs and leased them back to pubs group. Greene King’s shares have fallen 40 per cent since 206 Brexit vote to leave EU. CK Asset Holding’s offer represents a premium 51 per cent on Friday’s closing prices.