Network International confirms £2.1bn takeover offer from Brookfield Asset Management – trumping rival bids
- Brookfield Asset Management has made a 400p per share bid for Network
- CVC and Francisco Partners are currently offering Network 387p per share
- There has been a renewed takeover frenzy for publicly-traded British firms
Brookfield Asset Management has joined the takeover battle for payments processor Network International with a £2.1billion counteroffer.
Bloomberg initially reported on Thursday that the Canadian investment group was considering a bid for the Dubai-headquartered business.
The proposal represents a 13p per share premium on the joint approach from the private equity consortium CVC Advisers and Francisco Partners, which Network said earlier this week it was ‘minded’ to accept.
Bidding contest: Brookfield Asset Management has joined the takeover battle for the payments processor Network International with a £2.1billion counteroffer
Both bids are below Network’s initial public offering price of 435p four years ago in what was then the largest flotation by a technology firm on the London Stock Exchange since Worldpay’s £4.8billion IPO in 2015.
Network told investors on Friday that it was assessing the Brookfield proposition with financial advisers and would make an additional statement in due course.
‘There can be no certainty that an offer will be made by Brookfield, nor as to the terms on which any offer might be made,’ the company added.
Following the announcement, Network International shares rose 9.4 per cent to 394p in early Friday trading.
The interest in Network comes at a time of renewed frenzy for publicly-traded British businesses among foreign investors trying to take advantage of cheap valuations.
On Friday, bosses at Sureserve, a social housing energy services provider, said they had agreed to a £214.1million takeover by private equity firm Cap10 Partners.
In its latest annual results, the Kent-based group reported revenue jumped by 27 per cent thanks to its gas divisions winning a large number of significant contracts.
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Earlier this week, embattled e-commerce retailer THG revealed it had secured a ‘highly preliminary and non-binding indicative proposal’ from Apollo Global Management.
THG shares have plummeted by more than 80 per cent since the firm listed in September 2020 following a slowdown in online sales, corporate governance concerns and heavy losses.
Apollo is also targeting oilfield services provider John Wood Group, recently upping its offer for the Edinburgh-based company to £1.7billion, having seen four previous bids rejected.
Other companies to have received takeover approaches include property fund Industrial REIT and veterinary products maker Dechra Pharmaceuticals.
Among the businesses that have fallen into overseas ownership during the last year are fashion seller Ted Baker, aerospace components maker Meggitt, and defence giant Ultra Electronics, which was acquired by Advent International.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: ‘While UK investors may welcome outside endorsement that the British shares are undervalued, and the potential for a quick return from a takeover, it is not good for the long-term health of the London market to see so many names disappearing.’