The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) has entered into an underwriting agreement to sell its 18.6 percent shareholding in IRESS Limited (IRESS).
The sale has been fully underwritten at a fixed price of $11.95 per share and is expected to realise gross proceeds of $385 million.
ASX’s investment in IRESS was held at $357.9 million or $11.12 per share on 31 December 2018. The cost base of ASX’s shareholding is $151 million or $4.70 per share.
According to ASX, the transaction will generate a post-tax gain of $161 million, which will be recognised directly in equity.
Dominic Stevens, ASX’s managing director and CEO, said: “IRESS has been an attractive investment for ASX over many years. But we believe now is the right time to divest as it no longer provides the strategic value to ASX that it once did.”
He said: “ASX is focused on a multi-layered growth strategy built upon our position as an independent and reliable operator of financial market infrastructure.”
“When ASX invested in IRESS’s initial public offering in 2000, both ASX and IRESS were predominantly focused on servicing the Australian equities market. Since then, both businesses have successfully evolved and expanded.”
