Whitcoulls Cleared to Acquire Borders

Whitcoulls Cleared to Acquire Borders

The Commerce Commission has cleared A&R Whitcoulls Group Holdings Pty Limited (Whitcoulls) to acquire 100 % of the shares in Borders New Zealand Limited (Borders).

Commission Chair Paula Rebstock said that the Commission was satisfied that the proposed acquisition would not have, or would not be likely to have, the effect of substantially lessening competition in any of the relevant markets.

Whitcoulls is an Australian proprietary company registered with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, and is owned by Pacific Equity Partners Pty Limited. In New Zealand, Whitcoulls is involved in the retail of books, magazines, stationery, cards and DVDs through its wholly-owned subsidiary Whitcoulls Holdings Limited.

Borders is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Borders Group Inc. which is listed on the New York stock exchange. In New Zealand, Borders is involved in the retail of books, magazines, stationery, cards, DVDs and CDs.

In considering the application, the Commission's role is to determine whether the acquisition has the effect of substantially lessening competition in a market.

A public version of the written decision will be available as soon as practicable on the Commission's website, www.comcom.govt.nz, under Public Registers.

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