Lightinthebox Closes Ezbuy Deal in Hopes of Avoiding Forced Delisting From NYSE
Liao Shumin
DATE:  Dec 11 2018
/ SOURCE:  yicai
Lightinthebox Closes Ezbuy Deal in Hopes of Avoiding Forced Delisting From NYSE Lightinthebox Closes Ezbuy Deal in Hopes of Avoiding Forced Delisting From NYSE

(Yicai Global) Dec. 11 -- Cross-border e-commerce firm Lightinthebox Holding has finalized its USD85.6 million takeover of Singaporean counterpart Ezbuy as it looks to retain its listing on the New York Stock Exchange.

The Beijing-based buyer will take a 100 percent stake in Ezbuy by issuing one-year interest-free convertible bonds, it said in a statement yesterday. Shares in the firm [NYSE:LITB] shot up 4.3 percent shortly after the market opened, but closed down 7.27 percent at USD0.64, a decline of around 5 US cents.

The transaction aims to expand Lightinthebox's global cross-border e-commerce by enhancing user experience and supply chain management, Qi Zhiping, who was chief executive when the deal was announced, said at the time. The two firms' warehousing and logistics networks in China share huge commercial synergies which will promote sustainable growth, he added.

In order to secure the deal, the buyer has named Jian He, founder and CEO of Ezbuy, as Lightinthebox's new CEO. Qi will step down but stay on as a director and vice president.

Lightinthebox originally announced the deal in early November, a week after the NYSE warned it was at risk of forced delisting because it had traded at less than USD1 for 30 straight trading sessions. The firm, which generates 98 percent of its revenue from overseas users, has six months to get its share price back above the threshold.

Its share price rose to USD1.34 after the initial announcement, but began declining again on Nov. 14. The firm now has a market cap of about USD43.4 million, barely half of what it will pay for Ezbuy.

Editor: James Boynton

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Keywords:   Lightinthebox,Ezbuy,E-Commerce,Online Retail