Singapore Press Holdings Ltd (SPH) said shareholders today voted in support of the proposal by Cuscaden Peak Pte Ltd– a consortium led by hotelier Ong Beng Seng together with units of the city’s investment giant – confirming an earlier report by Bloomberg.

The proposal valuing the company at S$3.9 billion (US$2.9 billion), was approved by 89% of shareholders, according to the statement.

Shares of the company have been suspended since late Monday.

Shareholder acceptance of Cuscaden’s offer marks the likely conclusion of a corporate takeover that was gripped by twists. SPH and rival bidder Keppel Corp, whose largest shareholder is also Temasek, are locked in arbitration after the oil rig and property conglomerate’s offer was dropped last month.

As part of the deal, Cuscaden will acquire shopping malls located in Singapore and Australia, student accommodation in the UK and Germany, and a local nursing home chain. SPH also has investments in the education and events business.

Bidding war

Trading of SPH shares will be suspended on April 8 and the deal is expected to close on April 28, the company said. SPH is due to be delisted on May 13.

Keppel kicked off the bidding in August last year with an offer valuing SPH at S$3.4 billion. For close to three months, many expected the deal to be straightforward until Ong made a surprise rival offer.

In November, Keppel raised its offer, triggering an even higher bid from Ong’s group days later. But in early February, SPH moved to drop Keppel, after conditions weren’t satisfied by a Feb 2 cut-off date, smoothing the path for Cuscaden.