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Court clears way for Telekom settlement in investor dispute
After almost 20 years, Deutsche Telekom is getting closer to a solution in a dispute with thousands of small shareholders. The Frankfurt Higher Regional Court approved a settlement proposal by the Bonn group on Tuesday. The approximately 16,000 plaintiffs should now receive an offer from Telekom by mid-2022. The Dax group could face expenses in the three-digit million range. “The Senate advises everyone involved to conclude this settlement,” said the presiding judge, Bernhard Seyderhelm. Shortly after the third IPO in 2000, the first lawsuits were filed against Telekom by shareholders. They complained that the company had made false statements in the prospectus in connection with its stake in the US company Sprint. According to a ruling by the Federal Court of Justice in 2014, the risks related to Sprint were not adequately described. If the settlement is accepted, the plaintiffs will receive back the purchase price paid in 2000, from which dividends paid in the meantime and approximately today’s price are deducted. The shares then remain in the possession of the investors.
The Dax group could face expenses in the three-digit million range.