BEIJING, Sept. 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Zhaopin Limited
(NYSE: ZPIN) ("Zhaopin" or the "Company"), a leading career
platform[1] in China
focused on connecting users with relevant job opportunities through
their career lifecycle, today announced the completion of its
merger (the "Merger") with Zebra Mergerco, Ltd. ("Merger Company"),
pursuant to the previously announced agreement and plan of merger
(the "Merger Agreement"), dated April 6,
2017, among the Company, SEEK International Investments Pty
Ltd. ("Parent") and Merger Company. As a result of the Merger,
Parent together with affiliates of Hillhouse Capital Management,
Ltd. and FountainVest Partners acquired the Company and the Company
ceased to be a publicly traded company thereafter.
As previously announced, on June 19,
2017, the Company declared the final amount of a cash
special dividend (the "Special Dividend") of US$0.94 per ordinary share of the Company (each a
"Share"), corresponding to US$1.88
per American depositary share of the Company (each, an "ADS") (each
representing two Shares) as contemplated under and determined in
accordance with the terms of the Merger Agreement, payable to
holders of record of issued and outstanding Shares and ADSs as of
immediately prior to the effective time of the Merger (the
"Effective Time"), subject to and conditioned upon the consummation
of the Merger. The Special Dividend will be paid by the Company as
soon as practicable and no later than three business days (as such
term is defined in the Merger Agreement) following the Effective
Time.
In addition, under the terms of the Merger Agreement, which has
been approved by the Company's shareholders at an extraordinary
general meeting held on September 25,
2017, other than certain of the Company's ordinary shares
described below, each Share that was issued and outstanding
immediately prior to the Effective Time of the Merger has been
cancelled and converted into and exchanged for the right to receive
US$8.16 (which represents
US$9.10 per Share minus the
US$0.94 per Share amount of the
Special Dividend) (such amount, the "Per Share Merger
Consideration"), and each ADS, together with the two Shares
underlying each such ADS, has been cancelled in exchange for
US$16.32 (which amount represents
US$18.20 per ADS minus the
US$1.88 per ADS amount of the Special
Dividend) (such amount, the ''Per ADS Merger Consideration'') to be
paid, net of the cancellation fee of US$0.05 per ADS, pursuant to the terms of the
Deposit Agreement, dated as of June 11,
2014, among the Company, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., in its
capacity as the ADS depositary (the "ADS Depositary"), and the
holders and beneficial owners of ADSs issued thereunder, in each
case, in cash, without interest and net of any applicable
withholding taxes.
The US$8.16 Per Share Merger
Consideration, together with the US$0.94 per Share amount of the Special Dividend,
will result in holder of Shares immediately prior to the Effective
Time being entitled to receive a total of US$9.10 in cash per Share, and the US$16.32 Per ADS Merger Consideration, together
with the US$1.88 per ADS amount of
the Special Dividend, will result in holder of ADSs immediately
prior to the Effective Time being entitled to receive a total of
US$18.20 in cash per ADS, in each
case in connection with the Merger.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the following Shares (including
Shares represented by ADSs) were not converted into or exchanged
for the right to receive the Per Share Merger Consideration or the
Per ADS Merger Consideration described in the immediately preceding
paragraphs:
(a) 54,503,586 Shares held by Parent immediately prior to the
Effective Time, which are deemed "Continuing Shares" pursuant to
the terms of the Merger Agreement, which do not entitle Parent to
payment of the Per Share Merger Consideration or the Per ADS Merger
Consideration in respect therefor (but entitle Parent to payment of
the Special Dividend in respect therefor), and were not cancelled
and instead continue to exist without interruption, and each
represents one validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable Class
B ordinary share of the surviving company,
(b) ordinary shares (including Class A ordinary shares
represented by ADSs) held by the Company or its subsidiaries and
the ADS Depositary and reserved for issuance pursuant to the
Company's share incentive plans immediately prior to the Effective
Time have been cancelled and ceased to exist without payment of any
consideration or distribution (including the right to receive the
Special Dividend) therefor, and
(c) ordinary shares held by holders who have validly exercised
and not effectively withdrawn or lost their rights to dissent from
the Merger pursuant to Section 238 of the Cayman Islands Companies
Law Cap. 22 (Law 3 of 1961, as consolidated and revised) have been
cancelled at the Effective Time for the right to receive the fair
value of such Shares determined in accordance with the provisions
of Section 238 of the Cayman Islands Companies Law.
Shareholders of record as of immediately prior to the Effective
Time who are entitled to the Per Share Merger Consideration will
receive a letter of transmittal and instructions on how to
surrender their Share certificates in exchange for the merger
consideration. Shareholders should wait to receive the letter of
transmittal before surrendering their ordinary share
certificates. The Special Dividend will be paid to
shareholders of record as of immediately prior to the Effective
Time pursuant to the Company's memorandum and articles of
association, applicable law and the Merger Agreement.
ADS holders of record as of immediately prior to the Effective
Time who are entitled to the merger consideration and the Special
Dividend will automatically receive from the ADS Depositary, per
each such ADS held by them, US$16.32
(less an ADS cancellation fee of US$0.05 per ADS) as the Per ADS Merger
Consideration and US$1.88 as the per
ADS amount of the Special Dividend, in cash, without interest and
net of any applicable withholding taxes, in exchange for the
cancellation of such ADSs. Payment of the net per ADS Merger
Consideration and Special Dividend will be made to such ADS holders
as soon as practicable after the ADS Depositary receives the merger
consideration and Special Dividend. ADS holders which hold their
ADSs in "street name" through their broker, bank or other nominee
will not be required to take any action to receive the net Per ADS
Merger Consideration and Special Dividend for their ADSs as the ADS
Depositary will arrange for the surrender of such ADSs and the
remittance of the net Per ADS Merger Consideration and Special
Dividend with The Depository Trust Company (the clearance and
settlement system for the ADSs) for distribution to the applicable
broker, bank or nominee on behalf of such beneficial owners. Any
questions concerning the receipt of the Per ADS Merger
Consideration and Special Dividend from holders who hold ADSs in
"street name" should be directed by such holders to their
applicable broker, bank or nominee.
The Company also announced today that it requested that trading
of its ADSs on the New York Stock Exchange (the "NYSE") be
suspended. The Company requested
that the NYSE file a Form 25 with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (the "SEC") notifying the SEC of the delisting of its
ADSs on the NYSE and the deregistration of the Company's registered
securities. The deregistration will become effective 90 days after
the filing of the Form 25 or such shorter period as may be
determined by the SEC. The Company intends to suspend its reporting
obligations under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended,
by filing a Form 15 with the SEC in approximately ten days. The
Company's obligations to file with the SEC certain reports and
forms, including Form 20-F and Form 6-K, will be suspended
immediately as of the filing date of the Form 15 and will cease
once the deregistration becomes effective.
About Zhaopin Limited
Zhaopin is a leading career platform in China, focusing on connecting users with
relevant job opportunities throughout their career lifecycle. The
Company's zhaopin.com website is the most popular career platform
in China as measured by average
daily unique visitors in each of the 12 months ended June 30, 2017, number of registered users as of
June 30, 2017 and number of unique
customers[2] for the three months ended June 30, 2017. The Company's over 140.0 million
registered users include diverse and educated job seekers who are
at various stages of their careers and are in demand by employers
as a result of the general shortage of skilled and educated workers
in China. In the fiscal year ended
June 30, 2017, approximately 49.3
million job postings[3] were placed on Zhaopin's
platform by 613,083 unique customers including multinational
corporations, small and medium-sized enterprises and state-owned
entities. The quality and quantity of Zhaopin's users and the
resumes in the Company's database attract an increasing number of
customers. This in turn leads to more users turning to Zhaopin as
their primary recruitment and career- related services provider,
creating strong network effects and significant entry barriers for
potential competitors. For more information, please visit
http://www.zhaopin.com.
Safe Harbor Statements
This announcement may include certain statements that are not
descriptions of historical facts, but are forward-looking
statements. Forward-looking statements can generally be identified
by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "will," "should,"
"may," "believes," "expects" or similar expressions. All of such
assumptions are inherently subject to uncertainties and
contingencies beyond the Company's control. The Company does not
undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement,
except as required under applicable law.
[1]
Zhaopin's website is the most popular career platform in China as
measured by average daily unique visitors in each of the 12 months
ended June 30, 2017, the number of registered users as of June 30,
2017 and the number of unique customers for the three months ended
June 30, 2017.
|
[2] A
"unique customer" refers to a customer that purchases the Company's
online recruitment services during a specified period. Zhaopin
makes adjustments for multiple purchases by the same customer to
avoid double counting. Each customer is assigned a unique
identification number in the Company's information management
system. Affiliates and branches of a given customer may, under
certain circumstances, be counted as separate unique
customers.
|
[3]
Zhaopin calculates the number of job postings by counting the
number of newly placed job postings during each respective period.
Job postings that were placed prior to a specified period - even if
available during such period - are not counted as job postings for
such period. Any particular job posting placed on the Company's
website may include more than one job opening or
position.
|
For more information, please contact:
Zhaopin Limited
Ms. Daisy Wang
Investor Relations
(86-10) 5863 5888 ext. 68346
ir@zhaopin.com.cn
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SOURCE Zhaopin Limited