MetLife recommends shareholders reject “mini tender” offer by Potemkin

MetLife (MET) has received notice of an unsolicited mini-tender offer by Potemkin to purchase up to 100,000 shares of MetLife common stock from MetLife shareholders. The offer is for approximately 0.02% of MetLife shares of common stock outstanding as of March 31. Potemkin’s offer price of $44.20 per share is approximately 41.35% lower than the $75.36 closing price of MetLife common stock on April 13. MetLife does not endorse Potemkin’s unsolicited mini-tender offer and recommends that shareholders do not tender their shares in response to Potemkin’s offer because the offer is at a price that is significantly below the current market value of MetLife’s common stock. MetLife is not associated in any way with Potemkin, its mini-tender offer, or its mini-tender offer documents. Potemkin has made similar mini-tender offers for shares of other companies. Mini-tender offers, such as this one, seek to acquire less than 5% of a company’s shares outstanding, thereby avoiding many disclosure and procedural requirements of the SEC.