They get us, They get us not, They get us, They get us not, They get us……………………….. and thus ends the saga of Panalpina’s buy out by DSV..
After months of speculation and back and forth, the Danish forwarder DSV will finally have their hands on their Swiss rival logistics group Panalpina through a $4.6 billion deal, making them one of the leading global transport and logistics companies in the industry with significant growth opportunities and potential..
As per DSV, if the offer is successful, DSV and Panalpina will become one of the world’s largest transport and logistics companies with a global workforce of more than 60,000 employees operating in 90 countries around the world..
In order to maintain the rich history and heritage of both organisations who have been instrumental in the development of European and global logistics, DSV will propose to its shareholders, to change its name to “DSV Panalpina A/S”..
As per Kurt Larsen, Chairman of the Board of DSV, “A combination of DSV and Panalpina further strengthens our position as a leading global freight forwarding company.
Together, we can present a strong global network and enhanced service offering to our clients, further solidifying our competitive edge in the industry.
It’s a great match on all parameters. Panalpina is a great company and we’re very excited by the possibility to join forces and to welcome Panalpina’s talented staff”.
Peter Ulber, Chairman of the Board of Panalpina, commented, “In the course of the past weeks, Panalpina’s board of directors and management have been exploring different strategic initiatives and held discussions with DSV about a potential combination.
The board of directors’ assessment is that the updated proposal of DSV is very attractive. We are now looking forward to joining forces with DSV and contributing to creating, one of the world’s largest transport and logistics companies.”
The combined DSV/Panalpina force will create the world’s No. 4 freight-forwarding company, following DHL Logistics, Kuehne & Nagel and DB Schenker..
The 20 largest freight forwarders in the world, control just a third of the forwarders market in sharp contrast to the Top 11 shipping lines accounting for almost 87% of the global container shipping market..
This makes the forwarding industry ripe for takeovers or partnerships with companies looking for ways to take advantage of economies of scale and improve profitability while also staving off competition from digital freight forwarders like Flexport whose recent funding of $1 billion already places them at $3.2 billion valuation, not very far from the purchase price of Panalpina..
DSV Chief Executive Officer Jens Bjorn Andersen believes that DSV would be able to integrate Panalpina into DSV within two to three years and is confident that competition authorities would approve the deal..
DSV has a long and successful track record of partnering with companies, with their last big one being the acquisition of UTi Worldwide Inc in 2015 and this latest combined business is expected to be exceptionally well positioned for future growth..
