Maersk CEO Vincent Clerc unexpectedly announced his interest in acquiring German freight forwarder DB Schenker, saying, “It’s not necessarily the most likely outcome, but it’s something we need to look into.”

The news caused widespread concern in the industry, as Maersk had previously insisted that it had no intention of buying DB Schenker.

At the end of 2021, when market rumors of a takeover of DB Schenker emerged, Cowen Sheng made it clear that “we are not interested in this at all, and this has been our position many times.” We don’t want to get into the freight forwarding business, it’s not what we want to offer our customers.”

Now, with Ke Wensheng’s statement, the acquisition war in the logistics industry seems to have added another uncertainty. “Whether we do this deal or not, it will have an impact because it changes the logistics landscape… It would be irresponsible of us not to investigate.”

DB Schenker is currently the fourth largest international freight forwarder in the world, with more than 1,850 branches and offices in more than 130 countries and approximately 76,600 employees.

It is understood that DB Schenker is currently valued at about “between 12 billion and 15 billion euros.”

Change the market pattern

The announcement came as a surprise to Sydbank, which closely follows Maersk and DSV. “It really surprised me. I always thought Maersk would be the least likely buyer for DB Schenker.” Senior analyst Mikkel Emil Jensen.

He further noted that Maersk has in the past tended to acquire smaller logistics companies and scale these companies through its large customer base. So DB Schenker, the world’s fourth-largest logistics company, could be quite a turnaround for Maersk.

“By contrast, DSV seems to be a more suitable buyer, as DSV can get significant synergies from DB Schenker.” “Jensen says.

But he also cited signs that Maersk was struggling to achieve 10 per cent organic growth in its current logistics business, which may have added urgency to its quest for new acquisitions.

DSV has long been considered one of the strongest buyers of DB Schenker and is seen as having a “unique opportunity”.

It is understood that the German industrial media DVZ recently reported that the first stage of the sale process of DB Schenker has been successfully concluded.

At this point, Cowen Sheng confirmed that Maersk “will consider participating in the acquisition,” although a bit unexpected, but confirmed a series of previous market rumors.

However, what is very subtle is the appointment of a former Maersk executive as CEO of DB Schenker Asia Pacific, specifically, DB Schenker’s appointment of Vishal Sharma as CEO of Asia Pacific, effective February 1 this year.

Vishal Sjarma has worked in the logistics field for more than 30 years and has been the CEO of DB Schenker Cluster Greater China since 2021. He joined DB Schenker in 2018 as CEO of the Indian Subcontinent Cluster.

Prior to joining DB Schenker, Vishal Sharma held various executive positions with freight companies in the United States, Singapore, India and Denmark. For example, he worked for several years at Maersk and Danmax (Maersk’s former logistics division).
Acquisitions are tough
About 20 companies are reportedly bidding for the German freight forwarder for the first time. Soon, it will be narrowed down to five.

“Db Schenker is much larger than any of their previous acquisitions and we think the execution risk is too high to be attractive,” said Tobias Fromme, analyst at Bernstein.

He keeps a close eye on Maersk, DB Schenker and logistics company DSV, noting that with such an acquisition Maersk would have to integrate the German company into its logistics business.

“This makes execution more challenging for Maersk. Especially for a logistics giant like DB Schenker, “Fromme said.

However, it is worth pondering that one Danish asset manager said Maersk may struggle to convince equity investors to buy new shares in Maersk to fund the acquisition. Because so far, Maersk has not had much success in terms of logistics acquisitions and the performance of the logistics division.
Shipping giants are on a buying spree
At the beginning of 24 years, several of the world’s largest shipping companies have announced the acquisition of logistics companies. The supply chain disruptions exposed during the pandemic have led shipping companies to move toward an integrated logistics system, a trend that has been reinforced by the Red Sea crisis that has hampered global shipping lanes.

Shipping companies are consolidating to help provide customers with more sustainable, customized total supply chain solutions.

Cosco Shipping acquires Italian logistics company

On January 8, COSCO Shipping (Europe) Co., LTD. ‘s Kathrich Joint venture successfully acquired the Italian brand supply chain company TRASGO. This acquisition marks a new stage and fast track for COSCO Shipping’s digital supply chain construction in Italy and Europe.

Cma CGM acquires British logistics company

On January 19, CEVA Logistics, a unit of French shipping company CMA CGM Lines, announced that it has reached an agreement with British logistics company Wincanton to acquire the entire stake in the company for about $720 million, which is also the first acquisition of the CMA CGM Group in 2024.

Hapag-lloyd buys British logistics company

On 22 January, German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd announced the acquisition of a 100% stake in UK-based logistics company ATL Haulage Contractors Ltd (ATL). Following the acquisition, Hapag-Lloyd’s transport companies will work together to strengthen their presence in inland container transport and better provide customers with best-in-class intermodal transport services.

Source: Marine network, foreign shipping