Kingfisher Abandons Takeover Of Mr Bricolage

A planned £200m deal by the owner of B&Q to buy the French DIY chain Mr Bricolage has collapsed.

The market responded positively to the development with shares in Kingfisher rising by 2% or 8.6p to 366.4p.

The home improvement giant confirmed it had abandoned the planned takeover of its smaller French rival after a major shareholder in Mr Bricolage signalled its opposition to the move.

ANPF, an organisation controlled by Mr Bricolage franchisees that holds almost 42% of the retailer's shares, had raised concerns over store closures resulting from the deal.

Kingfisher had set a deadline of 31 March for regulatory approval of the takeover, although an extension could have been agreed with all-party approval.

However, this had been rejected by ANPF.

Kingfisher said in a statement: "Therefore, notwithstanding Kingfisher’s efforts to pursue the completion of the transaction, and in light of the positions expressed to date by the ANPF and Mr Bricolage, the anti-trust clearance will not be obtained by 31 March, 2015 and therefore the July 2014 agreement will lapse on that date.

"Consequently the transaction will not proceed. Kingfisher is considering all of its options."

It is understood this could include legal action.

Mr Bricolage declined to comment.

Kingfisher had been looking to strengthen its position in France, where it already owns Castorama and Brico Depot.

The collapse of the deal comes as Kingfisher is due to report its full year results with the firm expected to post a 9% drop in pre-tax profit.