Tesco completes Booker takeover in £4bn deal

Leading UK grocery retailer Tesco has finally completed the acquisition of UK-based wholesaler Booker in a £4bn deal.

Booker received 0.861 in Tesco shares and 42.6 pence per share, with the company now having been delisted from the London Stock Exchange.

See also:

• Shareholders give green light to Tesco and Booker merger that will create largest food group in UK

• Deliveroo and JustEat to cut down on takeaway plastics

• Q&A: Inside Mövenpick’s digital transformation journey

The takeover, originally worth £3.7bn, was first proposed in January of 2017, with Tesco’s shareholders having approved the bid last week.

Figures from both companies show that 83.4% of Booker investors approved the deal, whilst 85.22% of Tesco’s voted in favour of acquiring the wholesaler.

The approval of the shareholders of both firms follows a regulatory approval from the Competition and Markets Authority that came at the end of last year.

Tesco will now work to integrate Booker into its existing operations, furthering its own stature as one of Europe’s leading grocery retailers.

Charlie Wilson, CEO of Booker, will become the CEO of Tesco’s retail and wholesale operations in the UK and Ireland, reporting directly to company CEO Dave Lewis.