THG boss Moulding reportedly would accept £3bn offer

The founder and CEO of THG, Matt Moulding, has reportedly said he would accept a take-over bid of £3 billion pounds for the online retail firm.

Moulding's approval is a key factor for any offer as he has a "golden share" that allows him to veto any bid - of which there have been three so far. It is understood that Moulding has also made it clear to potential buyers that he would continue to lead the company if it goes private.

On 19 May THG made a statement saying that it had turned down a third takeover offer of £2.07 billion made by two investment companies, Belerion Capital and King Street Capital Management. In a separate statement made on the same day, property and tech investor Nick Candy announced that that he was "considering a possible offer" to take THG private.

It emerged at the end of April this year that Moulding had rejected several takeover proposals but that the board had concluded that “each and every proposal to date has been unacceptable, failing to reflect the fair value of the group”.

The company, previously known as The Hut Group, has faced speculation that it could be taken private after seeing a dive in its value following its 2020 stock market float. It came as THG reported that revenues increased by 16.3% to £520.2 million for the first quarter of 2022.

THG owns brands including online platform Coggles (pictured above), MyProtein, LookFantastic and Cult Beauty.