Emerald Holdings Sued Over $400 Million Onex-Backed Offering (1)

Emerald Holding Inc. and its board were hit with a Delaware lawsuit Monday claiming a planned $400 million stock offering will let private equity firm Onex Corp. increase its controlling stake based on inside information while the coronavirus has Emerald’s shares at a “historic” low.

The transaction targeted by the Chancery Court suit is supposed to give Emerald the liquidity and flexibility to weather the Covid-19 pandemic, which has “at least temporarily” ground its business to a virtual halt.

Emerald, a trade show organizer, is the former Nielsen Expositions, which Onex took public after acquiring it from Nielsen Holdings for ...