Cherat Cement and Shirazi Investments launch joint bid for Rafhan Maize

A week after U.S. ingredient giant Ingredion Inc. formally invited suitors for its 71% holding in Rafhan Maize Products Company Ltd. (RMPL), the market has its first heavyweight bidders: Cherat Cement Company Ltd. (CCCL) and Shirazi Investments (Pvt.) Ltd. (SIL), the investment arm of the Atlas Group. In a notice filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission of Pakistan on 8 May, the two firms announced their “public intention to acquire up to 75.69% (6.99 million shares) and joint control” of the Faisalabad‑based starch maker.

The partners will purchase the shares on an equal 50‑50 basis through a Share‑Purchase Agreement with Ingredion and, if required under takeover rules, follow up with a public tender offer for the remaining float. The offer is subject to regulatory clearance, but the parties have already mandated Topline Securities as manager to the offer and flagged that voting control will be shared once the deal closes.

Under the Securities Act, any shareholder crossing the 30% threshold must extend an offer to minorities. Cherat Cement and Shirazi have therefore declared headroom to buy up to 75.69% – essentially everything Ingredion owns plus any additional shares they may scoop in the ensuing tender. The target’s free float is just 24%, so the bid is effectively a battle for near‑total control.