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AMSTERDAM—International holding company HAL Holding NV said last week that it is working to fulfill “all relevant requirements under the transaction documentation” related to the proposed acquisition of retailer GrandVision (Euronext: GVNV) by EssilorLuxottica (Euronext: EL). HAL noted that it is working “together with” GrandVision / and EssilorLuxottica to move the deal forward, including obtaining all requisite regulatory approvals. The holding company, which owns 76.7 percent of GrandVision – provided comments on the proposed deal in its announcement of third-quarter and nine-month results.

The proposed acquisition of GrandVision has been delayed by a series of court filings and arbitration proceedings that the two main parties – GrandVision and EssilorLuxottica – have brought against one another, as VMAIL reported.

The proposed transaction has been “unconditionally cleared” in the United States, Russia, Colombia, Brazil, and Mexico, and it is currently under review in the European Union, Chile, and Turkey, according to the HAL Holding announcement on Nov. 24.

GrandVision and EssilorLuxottica agreed to a deal in July 2019 in which EssilorLuxottica would acquire GrandVision from parent company HAL Holding in a deal valued at about €7.1billion, as VMAIL reported. 

As of Sept. 30, 2020, the stock market value of HAL’s 76.7 percent ownership interest in GrandVision amounted to €4.7 billion (which compares with €5.4 billion at the end of 2019), according to the HAL announcement.

The holding company also noted that on July 31, 2019 – the day the day the proposed transaction was officially announced – the companied noted that the closing of the acquisition of the retailer by EssilorLuxottica was expected to occur prior to July 31, 2021.