A consortium led by financial-holding company Fairfax Financial has agreed to acquire BlackBerry for $4.7 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, Fairfax Financial will acquire every BlackBerry stock-share it doesn’t already own.
Prem Watsa is the head of Fairfax and a former board member of Blacberry who also owns 10 percent of BlackBerry. Watsa stepped down when BlackBerry announced it was considering a sale last month.
BlackBerry said its board of directors approved the terms of the letter of intent. The statement said BlackBerry and Fairfax will negotiate and execute a definitive transaction agreement by November 4. It also mentioned that its shareholders will receive $9 in cash for each share.
Further details are pending, including future management structure and whether BlackBerry will continue with its stated intent to lay off thousands of employees over the next few months. ‘
The Special Committee is seeking the best available outcome for the Company’s constituents, including for shareholders,’ Barbara Stymiest, chair of BlackBerry’s Board of Directors, wrote in a statement. ‘Importantly, the go-shop process provides an opportunity to determine if there are alternatives superior to the present proposal from the Fairfax consortium.’
Watsa is one of Canada’s best-known value investors and the billionaire founder of Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. BlackBerry founder Mike Lazaridis recruited Watsa to join the company’s board when Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie stepped aside as its co-CEOs in January, 2012.
A special committee formed by BlackBerry’s Board of Directors had spent the past few weeks looking for a potential acquirer. BlackBerry has seen its market-share crumble as businesses and consumers embrace rivals such as Apple’s iPhone and Google Android devices.”
Trading of the company’s stock was halted ahead of the news. BlackBerry shares plunged after the company announced Friday a loss of nearly $1 billion and layoffs of 4,500 workers.
“We believe this transaction will open an exciting new private chapter for BlackBerry its customers, carriers and employees,” Watsa said in a statement. “We can deliver immediate value to shareholders, while we continue the execution of a long-term strategy in a private company.
Watsa said in April that he’s a “big supporter” of current CEO Thorsten Heins and called his promotion the right decision in early 2012. He also said he’s excited about the company’s new BlackBerry 10 operating system.
This year’s launch of BlackBerry 10, its revamped operating system, and fancier devices the touchscreen Z10 and Q10 for keyboard loyalists was supposed to rejuvenate the brand and lure customers. But the much-delayed phones have failed to turn the company around.
Last week, Blackberry laid of 4,500 employees and also reported earlier that it lost nearly $1 billion in the second quarter.
The company also said on Friday it plans to focus on offering only two high-end devices and two entry-level handsets going forward, with emphasis on the business market
