Khoo Kay Peng to cede control of Pan Malaysia Holdings to Exsim Group's Lim brothers in RM36.7m deal

• The purchase price represents a 45% discount to PM Holdings’ closing price of 11 sen on Thursday, valuing the group at RM102.17 million.

KUALA LUMPUR (March 7): Property developer Exsim Group's founders, the Lim brothers, are acquiring a 65.9% stake in Pan Malaysia Holdings Bhd (PM Holdings) from three companies linked to prominent businessman Tan Sri Khoo Kay Peng for RM36.73 million or six sen a share.

This confirms a report in Jan 22-28 edition of The Edge Malaysia that several parties were looking to take up a block of shares in PM Holdings.

The purchase price represents a 45% discount to PM Holdings’ closing price of 11 sen on Thursday, valuing the group at RM102.17 million.

The Lim brothers, through Exsim Hospitality Holdings Sdn Bhd, entered into an agreement on Thursday to buy a 38.59% stake in PM Holdings from Loyal Design Sdn Bhd, an 18.4% stake from MUI Media Ltd and an 8.91% stake from Megawise Sdn Bhd, according to PM Holdings' stock exchange filing.

Exsim Hospitality is obliged to extend an unconditional mandatory takeover offer to buy up all the remaining shares in PM Holdings at six sen per share in cash, added PM Holdings.

Exsim Hospitality, however, intends to maintain PM Holdings’ listing status on Bursa Malaysia.

Loyal Design and MUI Media are wholly-owned subsidiaries of Malayan United Industries Bhd (MUI), while Megawise is wholly-owned by cocoa-based biscuits maker Pan Malaysia Corp Bhd (PM Corp), which in turn is 51%-owned by MUI.

Khoo is deemed to have a 41% indirect interest in MUI, through Cherubim Investment (HK) Ltd, Norcross Ltd, Bonham Industries Ltd and KKP Enterprises Sdn Bhd.

Exsim Hospitality, meanwhile, is 25%-controlled by Lim Aik Fu, with the remaining stake equally owned by his elder brothers Lim Aik Hoe and Lim Aik Kiat.

Aik Hoe and Aik Kiat are both managing directors of Exsim Group, while Aik Fu is the deputy managing director. The brothers founded the real estate development group in 2008.

PM Holdings became a takeover target after the divestment of its stockbroking and asset management subsidiaries PM Securities Sdn Bhd, PCB Asset Management Sdn Bhd and Miranex Sdn Bhd to NewParadigm Capital Ventures Sdn Bhd for RM90 million last November.

After the divestment, PM Holdings was left with the 10-storey Corus Paradise Resort in Port Dickson and the surrounding land, which had a book value of RM34.83 million, according to the group's annual report for the year ended June 30, 2023.

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