Irish-owned bakery group McCambridge claims it has been thwarted in its efforts to advance its takeover approach for Inter Link Foods, the troubled British cakemaker in which it has accumulated an 8.9 per cent stake.
The Irish firm, controlled by Michael McCambridge, has now threatened to withdraw its interest if Inter Link's board does not facilitate due diligence. Inter Link responded by saying it could not provide access to its books and bankers without the consent of its board, but shares in the cake-maker lost 12.24 per cent on the Alternative Investment Market in London to close at 107.5p.
Disagreement over a confidentiality clause emerged after Inter Link said on Monday that an "equity fundraising" was under consideration even though it remained in discussions with McCambridge. This drew a sharp response from McCambridge, which said in a statement that it had made repeated attempts to engage in "meaningful discussions" with Inter Link's board and commence commercial and financial due diligence.
"These attempts have, to date, been met by what McCambridge considers to be an unreasonable stance by the board of Inter Link regarding access to Inter Link's bankers. Considering the contents of the trading statement and the current high level of Inter Link's indebtedness, the board of McCambridge finds this position by Inter Link surprising
"In these circumstances, McCambridge is considering whether it should withdraw its initial approach until such time as the board of Inter Link is prepared to confirm that it will allow McCambridge direct access to its lenders as a vital part of its due diligence."
Responding, Inter Link called on McCambridge to make a "clear and unambiguous statement" that it accepted the company's position or was withdrawing its approach. "The company's position remains unchanged and it will not allow access to its bankers by McCambridge without the company's prior consent," it said.
"Since McCambridge made its recent unsolicited approach to the company, discussions had been restricted until such time as McCambridge signed a confidentiality agreement, which is a normal procedure intended to protect the interests of the company's stakeholders. This requirement for a confidentiality agreement is all the more pertinent in this case because McCambridge is a competitor or potential competitor with certain parts of the company's business.
"As they have stated, McCambridge had made a demand that they be permitted access to the company's bankers and, in this respect, the company's position has been consistent that such an approach must only be made with the company's consent."
