Shareholders of UK insurer to vote on deal with Intact

Shareholders of UK insurer to vote on deal with Intact | Insurance Business Canada

Mergers & Acquisitions

Shareholders of UK insurer to vote on deal with Intact

Board announces unanimous recommendation

Mergers & Acquisitions

By
Terry Gangcuangco

Shareholders of Direct Line Insurance Group Plc (Direct Line Group or DLG) will be voting on the proposed sale of DLG’s brokered commercial insurance business lines to RSA Insurance Group.

In its announcement, the Bromley-headquartered company said: “The board considers the transaction (and the resolution necessary to implement the transaction) to be in the best interests of the shareholders as a whole and unanimously recommends that shareholders vote in favour of the resolution at the general meeting.”

The general meeting will be held on October 19 in London.

Conditional upon the approval of Direct Line Group shareholders, the deal features an initial cash consideration of around CA$884 million, with potential for up to a further CA$51 million contingent payment. If RSA’s swoop pushes through, around 800 DLG colleagues will be transferred to the Intact Financial Corporation subsidiary.

In September, Intact chief executive Charles Brindamour said: “This acquisition significantly strengthens our UK&I (UK and international) business, and is strongly aligned with our strategic and financial objectives. The transaction enhances our position in the UK by doubling down on lines of business where we already outperform.”

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