Denis Ladegaillerie, the founder and CEO of Believe, is once again leading a private company.
As previously reported, Ladegaillerie has teamed up with the EQT X fund plus funds advised by TCV to form a private consortium.
As of last month, that consortium owned 96.65% of Believe, with the remaining ~4% of the company still trading on the Paris Euronext.
Today (July 22), Believe has ceased trading on that stock market, with Ladegaillerie’s consortium in the final throes of a ‘squeeze-out’ to regain full control of the business.
Under French financial law, a company’s owners can force public shareholders to sell their shares in a business – aka: a ‘squeeze-out’ – so long as only a fraction of said business remains trading on a public exchange.
Believe’s remaining public shareholders had until yesterday (July 21) to accept the Ladegaillerie consortium’s buyout offer of EUR €17.20 per share.
Some of those shareholders said yes: according to Believe, at yesterday’s close, the consortium ownership had increased to 98.67% of the company’s share capital and 97.40% of the voting rights.
However, some shareholders – those holding just 1.33% of Believe’s equity – didn’t accept Ladegaillerie’s offer by the deadline.
Alas, thanks to the ‘squeeze-out’ element, this was ultimately an offer… they could not refuse.
The 1.33% of Believe shareholders who didn’t accept the consortium’s offer by yesterday are now expected to see their shares transferred to Ladegaillerie and co. anyway via a ‘compulsory withdrawal’ for the €17.20 per share price.
Believe has confirmed that the consortium will file a request with the AMF (France’s equivalent of the USA’s SEC) in the coming days to complete this ‘squeeze-out’ process.
Public trading of Believe’s shares has been suspended today (July 22) ahead of the finalization of the ‘squeeze-out’.
Believe – now effectively private – also says it will cease public financial communications.
As a result, Believe has confirmed that its half-year results for 2025 will not be made public.
Last year, Ladegaillerie’s consortium gained majority control of Believe, securing 94.99% of the company’s share capital through a €15-per-share takeover bid. That transaction valued Believe at about €1.43 billion ($1.63 billion).
EQT previously said that, via its stake in the Ladegaillerie consortium, it expects to be “30-35% invested” in Believe. This implies that EQT X now owns around a third of the equity in Believe.
EQT, a global investment organization with €269 billion ($305.5 billion) in total assets under management, has increased its exposure to music-related assets. It has also invested in Epidemic Sound and talent agency UTA.
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