Cleary Gottlieb advised Canal+ on its listing on the London Stock Exchange in connection with its spin-off from Vivendi.
The listing was one of the first under the Financial Conduct Authority’s new listing regime.
The transaction is part of the reorganization of Vivendi SE and the separation of its various business units, including Canal+, announced on October 15, 2024. The demerger was completed by a partial transfer of assets pursuant to a demerger regime (actifs soumis au régime des cissions), in which Vivendi transferred all shares held in Groupe Canal+ SA to Canal+, and Canal+ The newly issued shares will be granted directly to Vivendi SE shareholders in proportion to their shareholdings in Vivendi SE. On December 9, 2024, the Extraordinary General Meeting of Vivendi SE approved the Partial Demerger with an overwhelming majority of 97.57% of the votes cast.
The listing prospectus for admission to trading on the London Stock Exchange was approved by the Financial Conduct Authority on 30 October 2024, and trading in Canal+ shares began on 16 December 2024.
Canal+ is a global media and entertainment company with operations in 195 countries and approximately 9,000 employees worldwide. The group is one of the largest media companies in Europe, both in terms of revenue and number of subscribers, and a leader in French-speaking sub-Saharan Africa. As of December 31, 2023, the group had 26.8 million subscribers worldwide.
Please see the press release for more information.