AFR: Logistics takes Toll at Japan Post, bankers called in

© Diane Picard

The Australian Financial Review reports:

Japan Post’s getting ready to bite the bullet at Australian transport logistics group Toll Holdings.

Less than five years after paying $8 billion for Toll, and following steep writedowns on its investment, Street Talk can reveal the former state-owned logistics and financial giant has called in bankers to pitch potential salvage plans for Toll including a sale.

Toll Holdings, which is owned by Japan Post, has been slashing costs to counter revenue expected to be lost during the COVID-19 outbreak. 

It is understood Japan Post held a beauty parade for a handful of investment banks and advisory firms in the past fortnight, asking them to present their ideas on potential exit strategies or other methods of attracting capital into the business.

Japan Post is keen to see the business pitched to potential private equity and trade buyers, sources said, in an effort to stem losses in Toll’s troublesome offshore arms and across the group more broadly following a major cyber attack in recent months.

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More here – check out the comment section.

“The Toll Story” can be found here.

Finally, our follow-up post – published on Tuesday, 14 April – is here: “M&A radar: Toll’s spring rolls – the revenge of private equity“.