The Taiwanese government has blocked a plan by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and the chairman of Taiwan’s Yageo Corporation to take the electronic components manufacturer private in what would have been Asia’s biggest private equity deal this year.
The rejection is a blow to Taiwan’s reputation as a destination for foreign investment, coming after a string of similar rejections or delays imposed by the government on large cross-border deals. The most notable example was AIG’s two-year attempt to sell Nan Shan, its Taiwan subsidiary, which is only now nearing completion.
KKR and Pierre Chen, who founded Yageo in 1977, in April offered T$16.10 per share, a 14 per cent premium to Yageo’s undisturbed share price, for the rest of the company.