Unconditional offer

An offer to the target company’s shareholders during the course of a takeover which has no conditions attached. The acquiring company offers to pay a specific price per share regardless of the number of shares it purchases. An offer is said to go or become unconditional when it is accepted by more than half of the existing shareholders. This gives shareholders who haven’t yet made up their minds 14 days to decide whether to sell. Under UK takeover rules a bid must go unconditional by day 60 of the bid or it lapses.

This definition is for general information purposes only