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Rejected: The Belgian insurance giant surrounding Direct Line has received a second offer rejected by Direct Line’s board of directors
The Belgian insurance giant around Direct Line has been asked to abandon its “aggressive” acquisition of the FTSE 250 company.
Direct Line’s board rejected a second offer from Ageas and one of its top ten shareholders wants it to abandon the search.
The offer of 237 pence per share, or about £3.2bn, was branded “opportunistic” by Direct Line.
The anonymous Ageas investor told Sky News the approach was “aggressive, unsolicited and opportunistic”. Ageas shareholders are understood to see no value in the deal.
Direct Line has hired investment bank Robey Warshaw – which employs former chancellor George Osborne – to bolster its defenses and work alongside the banking quartet of Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, RBC Capital Markets and JP Morgan Cazenove.
Bankers have their work cut out for them as Ageas said he will continue to engage with Direct Line’s board ahead of the March 27 deadline.
Direct Line has fallen on difficult times following the pandemic as high inflation has driven up claims costs. It will report 2023 results next Thursday.