LVMH and Tiffany delay acquisition deal by three months

French luxury giant LVMH and US jewelry brand Tiffany & Co have reportedly delayed the deadline for their acquisition deal by three months.

The 16.2 billion dollar deal is now set to close in November after it failed to close on 24 August, the date set out in the documents of the deal, Reuters reports, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Under the terms of the deal, 24 August was set as the first deadline to complete, but either party could push back that deadline as far as 24 November. Tiffany is now exercising that option, according to the source.

LVMH announced in November it would be acquiring Tiffany in its biggest deal to date.

In June, however, LVMH announced it was not planning to buy Tiffany shares on the open market. “Considering the recent market rumors, LVMH confirms, on this occasion, that it is not considering buying Tiffany shares on the market,” the group said in a statement at the time.

It followed reports that LVMH was rethinking the deal following industry-wide poor trading caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, the following week, Tiffany announced it received additional regulatory approval for its acquisition by LVMH.

LVMH reportedly considered renegotiating the terms of the deal based on the impact of Covid-19 but ultimately decided not to, the sources said.

Photo credit: Louis Vuitton, Facebook