Frasers boosts stake in MySale target

Frasers Group urged MySale shareholders to accept its £14m takeover offer on Monday, after the British retailer bolstered its stake in the Australian firm.

The retailer, which owns Sports Direct and House of Fraser, among others, said it had agreed to purchase 65m shares in MySale and acquired an interest in just over 2m contracts for difference, as well as receiving valid acceptances representing 0.11% of the share capital.

Frasers already owns more than 511m MySale shares, representing a stake of around 49.19%. But upon settlement of the 65m shares, and swapping the CFDs into stock, Frasers said it would own, or have received valid acceptances from, a total of 55.78% of the share capital.

It added: "MySale shareholders who have not yet accepted the mandatory offer are urged to do so as soon as possible by signing and returning the form of acceptance…no later than 1pm on the unconditional date [of] 1 November."

Mike Ashley’s Frasers first made its 2p a share offer for the flash sales specialist in September after snapping up a 29% stake over the summer. AIM-listed MySale said the offer undervalued it and its prospects and rejected the approach, noting that 2p per share is the minimum Frasers could have offered under takeover rules.

Frasers continued to build a stake in the penny stock, however, causing MySale to change tack. Last week it recommend the offer to shareholders, noting that while it still believed the offer undervalued the business, with its level of ownership, Frasers would be able to exercise "significant" control.

Frasers has previously said it wants to use MySale - which sells out-of-season fashion, homewares and beauty products - to expand into Australia and New Zealand, as well as using its website to sell its own end-of-line stock.

As at 1000 BST, shares in MySale were trading largely unchanged at 2p, while Frasers was down 1% at 637.04p.