Bancroft family member tries to thwart deal

Christopher Bancroft, a member of the family that controls Dow Jones & Co., the parent of The Wall Street Journal, is engaged in a last-ditch effort to thwart the acquisition of the company by News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch, writes three Journal reporters for Monday’s paper.

Susan Warren, Sarah Ellison and Dennis Berman wrote, “His idea is to buy more ‘supervoting’ shares from other Bancroft heirs who may be ready to sell their stakes but share his distaste for delivering the family legacy into the hands of Mr. Murdoch.

“Those supervoting rights give family members 10 votes for every one share — compared with one vote for common shareholders. They lose their supervoting status once sold, unless they are transferred to other family members. To ensure he would be able to block a deal, Mr. Bancroft would need to get 51% of the total votes of the company to vote against a deal, or about $2.55 billion at $60 a share. One wrinkle: In this scenario, holders of common shares probably wouldn’t get bought out — an unpleasant prospect for the arbitragers and others who own these shares and are expecting $60 or more.

“Mr. Bancroft, 55 years old and one of three family members on the Dow Jones board, has been working with advisers, including the law firm Latham & Watkins LLP, to structure a deal. Two people familiar with his actions said they doubted they would amount to much, given both the financial and legal complications of his plan.”

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