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The FTSE 100 insurer Aviva has agreed to buy the rival Direct Line in a £3.6bn cash and shares deal after a sweetened offer.
Direct Line’s board said that it would be minded to accept the offer of £2.75 a share, up from Aviva’s first bid of £2.50 a share that valued its FTSE 250 rival at £3.3bn.
Direct Line had argued that it could turn its performance around, after slumping in recent years. It rejected the first offer, saying it substantially undervalued the company.
The latest offer is a 73% premium to the closing price before the first bid was announced, the companies said in a joint stock market statement on Friday morning.
Aviva has until 5pm on Christmas Day to make a firm offer or walk away.
The French utility company Suez could reportedly be brought in to manage the struggling Thames Water as part of a new £5bn bid by an infrastructure investor.
Covalis Capital has submitted a bid to Thames Water, the Financial Times reported, as it looks for new owners and tries to agree an emergency debt package to avoid temporary nationalisation.
Thames Water provides water and sewage services to 16 million customers across London and the Thames Valley in south-east England. It has been on the verge of collapse for several months, labouring under its £19bn debt pile.
The investor plans to break up Thames Water and list the remainder on the stock market, while giving the UK government a seat on the board, according to people cited by the FT.
Under the deal, Suez would only function as a service provider. Suez said in a statement: "At this stage, Suez’s scope of work is limited to [an] advisory mission to ensure the project’s success and address the specific challenges faced by Thames Water."
The agenda
• 10am GMT: eurozone GDP growth third estimate (third quarter; previous 0.2% quarter on quarter; consensus 0.4%)
• 1.30pm GMT: US non-farm payrolls (November; previous 12,000 jobs; consensus 200,000)
We'll be tracking all the main events throughout the day … |
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