Oct 18, 2022
Bob Diamond’s Panmure Gordon in Takeover Talks With City Rival
, Bloomberg News
(Bloomberg) -- Panmure Gordon, the British boutique investment bank controlled by Bob Diamond’s private equity vehicle, is in talks with City of London rival finnCap Group Plc about a possible takeover.
FinnCap is in “early” discussions with Panmure Gordon, it said in a statement Tuesday. The non-binding proposal from Panmure Gordon would see it buying finnCap for cash, with shareholders able to choose to receive partial consideration in shares.
FinnCap’s shares were up almost 30% at 8:01 a.m. in London.
Diamond, the former Barclays Plc chief executive officer, acquired brokerage Panmure Gordon in 2017.
Read More: Bob Diamond Starts U.K. Return With Panmure Gordon Takeover
The announcement comes amid a drought in new stock offerings and dealmaking, which is hitting firms from global investment banks to small and mid-cap brokers in the UK. Consolidation is one way for smaller firms to ride out the downturn.
Diamond’s firm has until Nov. 15 to announce a firm intention to make a bid. Sky News reported on Monday that Panmure Gordon had approached finnCap.
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