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Written by Rajasik Mukherjee
(Reuters) – Shares in Australia’s Insignia Financial hit a three-year high on Monday as the financial battle intensified, as private equity firm Bain Capital raised its offer to A$2.87 billion ( $ 1.76 billion), in accordance with the protest of CC Capital. .
Under the offer, Insignia shareholders will receive A$4.30 per share, a 7.5% premium to Bain Capital’s earlier offer and a 4.4% premium to Insignia’s last closing price of A$4.120.
Shares in the 178-year-old Australian wealth manager, which provides cash, financial advisory and asset management services, gained 3.2% to A$4,250, the highest since on Oct. 28 2021.
Last week, US-based financial manager CC Capital Partners (WA:) has offered to buy Insignia for A$2.87 billion, days after the Australian company rejected Bain Capital’s initial offer, saying it did not provide the right value for shareholders.
“I see the bidding war is in the early days and we will probably see CC Capital respond to Bain’s increasing offer soon… It will be a very tight race,” said Grady Wulff, market analyst online business platform. Bell Direct.
CC Capital did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Bain’s counter offer extended the first fight to 2025 for the Australian firm. Last year was a very busy year for Australian retailers as M&A activity was worth $113.4 billion in 2024, according to LSEG data, up 15% from 2023 levels.
The Australian wealth manager said that under the revised proposal, Bain Capital will allow Insignia shareholders the option to receive a portion of the total purchase price as scrip in the new entity.
Bain Capital’s revised offer reflects investors’ strong appetite for Australian-listed wealth managers whose assets have grown significantly.
The deal will provide access to Australia’s A$4.1 trillion superannuation system, considered one of the world’s largest superannuation markets.
($1 = 1.6279 Australian dollars)
