BlackBerry Ltd. is reported to have registered to meet with lawmakers in Ottawa to discuss the Investment Canada Act, which governs the rules regarding foreign ownership of Canadian companies.
The federal lobbying register showed that BlackBerry has sought the meeting with government officials last week, according to a report in the Financial Post newspaper.
The smart phone maker’s move comes at a time when reports surfaced that Toronto-based Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd, BlackBerry’s largest shareholder, is having a difficult time organizing a consortium of Canadian pension fund firms to buyout BlackBerry.
A spokesperson for the BlackBerry said the company cannot comment on both of the reports.
There were talks earlier this month that BlackBerry (TSE: BB) is hoping to close a deal with potential buyers of the company by November. BlackBerry is said to be focusing on a list of possible purchasers which include foreign companies such as Chinese computer maker Lenovo Group Ltd., and local organizations like the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.
In August, BlackBerry set up a special committee to look into the company’s options. Among the companies possible routes are: possible joint ventures; strategic partnerships and selling the company.
Takeover speculations have pushed BlackBerry’s stocks up to nearly six per cent on Monday to $11.96. That is however way below the stock’s price of $138.57 back in 2008.
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