JSE-listed outsourcing firm Business Connexion (BCX) will start succession planning once it has clarity on whether it will be taken over by Telkom.
BCX is the subject of a R2.4 billion takeover bid by Telkom. The Competition Tribunal is reviewing the deal, with hearings due in mid-March.
However, CEO Peter Watt told analysts yesterday the company would be in a position to "make a call" by 13 March on whether to proceed.
Watt adds the company's lawyers are expected to provide feedback, on whether the bid will succeed, before the tribunal convenes in mid-March. "You can't pull out the rug once the tribunal has started hearings."
The Competition Commission referred Telkom's bid for BCX, which was initially hostile, to the tribunal last year on the basis that it was anti-competitive. The original mid-December deadline was subsequently extended by mutual consent.
BCX chairman Reginald Berkowitz says the indirect "damage" caused by the unwanted bid will never be known, as it cannot be quantified. However, management had a tough call to make and it chose to give the bid a chance as it was "such a good offer money-wise" for shareholders.
However, Watt says BCX can still pull out of the deal and will do so if it looks unlikely the tribunal will give it the "green light". Once there is clarity about the company's future, says Watt, the company can proceed with hiring a replacement CEO.
"It's good corporate governance to go to the marketplace," he says of the fact that, despite there being suitable internal candidates, the company will advertise the position. However, BCX will not start this process until its future ownership is clear. Watt will remain in place to ensure a successful handover.
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