ACCO shareholders approve MeadWestvaco merger

Lincolnshire-based ACCO Brands Corp. shareholders overwhelmingly approved a proposal to complete the merger of MeadWestvaco Corporation’s Consumer & Office Products business with a wholly owned subsidiary of ACCO Brands.

“We are very pleased with today’s vote approving our pending merger and the continued confidence and support we’ve received from our shareholders,” ACCO Brands Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Robert J. Keller said, “We are looking forward to completing this transaction and improving the competitive positioning of our business.”

The proposal allows ACCO to issue the stock needed to complete the transaction. That stock will be traded under the NYSE ticker symbol “ACCO wi.”  The completion of the merger remains subject to the satisfaction or waiver of several conditions but it is expected that the merger will be completed before the opening of NYSE trading on May 1, the company said in a statement. On May 1, assuming cthe merger is completed, all outstanding ACCO Brands common stock will trade under the new ticker symbol “ACCO.”

ACCO Brands and MeadWestvaco signed an agreement last November to merge MeadWestvaco’s Consumer & Office Products business into ACCO Brands in a transaction which was valued at approximately $860 million at the time of the announcement. Upon completion of the transaction, MeadWestvaco shareholders will own 50.5 percent of the combined company.

ACCO Brands Corp. is a global supplier of branded office products. Its brands include Day-Timer, Swingline, Kensington, Quartet, GBC, Rexel, NOBO, Derwent, Marbig and Wilson Jones, among others.