The new proposal to acquire Torstar is worth $58 million, according to a report in the Globe and Mail and confirmed by industry sources to the Star, up from the $52 million offered by Bitove and Rivett. Bitove and Rivett’s bid, through their purpose-created company NordStar, had already been raised once before. The Proud bid was initially made in late June, shortly after details of Bitove and Rivett’s bid — and agreements with various shareholders — were made public as part of regulatory filings. The NordStar bid, which is being financed by a five-year, $55 million loan from Canso Investment Counsel, was given the seal of approval by Torstar’s board in late May. Besides the Toronto Star, Torstar owns six other daily newspaper in Ontario including The Hamilton Spectator and Waterloo Region Record, some 70 community newspapers and numerous news sites and digital properties.

Source: thestar July 09, 2020 01:58 UTC