Brit Insurance set to open sales negotiations with Apollo
US private equity firm makes £852m bid
28 July 2010
Brit Insurance is set to opens sales negotiations with US
private equity firm Apollo Management.
Apollo has made a £10.75 a share offer for the UK insurer, which
values the company at £852 million.
Brit, which sponsors the England cricket team, has opened its
books to Amsterdam-based Apollo following the takeover bid.
"On behalf of shareholders, we think it is a good basis on which
we can start to have discussions," Brit chief executive Dane
Douetil told Reuters.
"If they [Apollo] do ever make an offer, at that time, we will
consider the offer."
The British company rejected a £10.50 a share offer from Apollo
earlier this month, with the firm holding out for an offer closer
to its valuation of £11 a share.
Brit reported a pretax profit of £72.8 million for first half of
2010, compared with £64.9 million in the same period last
year.