Tinius Trust to Sell Shares in Schibsted Marketplaces, Opening Door to Takeover Bids

The Tinius Trust, through its holding company Blommenholm Industrier, is preparing to sell nearly a third of its remaining shares in Schibsted Marketplaces, the Oslo-based classifieds giant soon to be renamed Vend.

The company has enlisted Arctic Securities and JP Morgan as coordinators for the sale of 9.4 million B-shares, representing 31% of Blommenholm’s stake and 4% of Schibsted Marketplaces’ total shares. If completed, the Trust will hold a 22% stake in the company.

Investor bids must be submitted by 08:00 on March 6th, with a minimum investment set at €100,000 ($103,769 U.S.). The sale is expected to close by 18:45 the same day, after which Blommenholm will be subject to a 90-day lock-up period, preventing further sales.

The move follows Schibsted’s split into two standalone businesses in June last year, separating its marketplaces and news media operations. Previously restricted from selling its shares, the Tinius Trust offloaded 3.2 million shares in October and had been expected to reduce its holdings further.

If the latest sale goes ahead, the Trust will lose its special rights, which currently prevent a takeover without its approval. This shift could make Schibsted Marketplaces an acquisition target.

Meanwhile, Schibsted Media is expanding, agreeing to acquire TV4, Scandinavia’s leading commercial TV network, from Telia. If approved, TV4 will become the Trust’s largest business.

Schibsted Marketplacaes operates leading Norwegian general classifieds platform FINN.no which enjoys market leadership in the domestic real estate marketplace. In Sweden, it runs the classifieds platform Blocket, the primary real estate marketplace HomeQ and the rentals marketplace Qasa among others while in Finland Schibsted Marketplaces runs the generalist marketplaces Oikotie and Tori.