Seek’s bid to acquire Xref collapses as shareholders reject offer
Seek’s bid to acquire Xref collapses as shareholders reject offer

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Australian job board Seek’s plan to acquire Xref Limited has surprisingly fallen through after failing to secure the required shareholder approval.
The offer from Seek of AUD 0.218 (USD 0.14) a share made in October was put to Xref shareholders in a scheme of arrangement meeting. While 68% of shareholders voted to accept Seek’s offer, the number failed to reach the required 75% threshold. As a result, the scheme implementation deed between Seek and Xref has been terminated.
Seek first announced in November 2024 that it had entered into a scheme implementation deed with Xref, an Australian-based HR and recruitment technology company that offers a range of reference and pre-employment checks.
Seek had previously declared the offer as its best and final proposal in the absence of a competing bid. It considered the offer to be fair and reasonable, which was confirmed by an independent expert, and Xref’s board unanimously recommended the scheme. It is unusual for such deals recommended by the acquired company’s board to be rejected by shareholders.
Xref will now continue as an independent company listed on the ASX (Australian Securities Exchange) and said it will resume its growth strategy.
Seek said it will continue to explore other opportunities to ‘grow placements, grow yield and improve operating leverage, which may include alternative approaches to achieving the benefits that the scheme would have provided.’
“I would like to extend my gratitude to the Seek leadership team, who have been a pleasure to work with during the scheme process,” Xref CEO and Founder, Lee-Martin Seymour said in a press release.
On Tuesday morning, Xref shares slumped 22.6% to AUD 0.12 (UDS 0.075), while Seek fell almost 1% to AUD 22.85 (USD 14.19).