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Qunar announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement and plan of merger with Ocean Management Holdings. The agreement valued the company at around USD 4.44 billion. Immediately following the consummation of the transactions, the combined entity will be beneficially owned by Ocean Management Limited, Ctrip and the other Rollover Shareholders. The merger, which is currently expected to close during the first half of 2017, is subject to customary closing conditions including the approval of the Merger Agreement and the merger by the affirmative vote of holders of Shares representing at least two-thirds of the voting power of the Shares present. The Rollover Shareholders have agreed to vote all of the Shares and ADSs they beneficially own, which represent approximately 94.3% of the voting power of the Shares outstanding as of the date of the Merger Agreement, in favor of the authorization and approval of the Merger Agreement and the merger. If completed, the merger will result in Qunar becoming a privately-owned company. Qunar resumes partnership with major Chinese airlines Having been frozen out by major carriers in China for nearly a year, Qunar announced on October 17 that it has restored partnerships with most carriers. Major Chinese airline companies including China Southern and Air China closed their flagship stores on Qunar on the last day of 2015, as they received substantial travelers’ complaints about irregularities on the booking website. The conflict between China’s airline companies and online travel agencies sprang from their competition for ticketing revenues. Qunar’s consolidation with Ctrip in 2015 put more pressure on the airlines as the two companies took around 70%-80% share of China's online air ticketing. Read original article |
