Insurer Royal London on Monday confirmed it was in talks with mutual LV on a potential takeover after the latter’s members rejected a bid from US private equity outfit Bain last year.
The company last December said it could offer members of the 179-year-old LV an “attractive future as part of a growing and well-capitalised mutual” after they rejected an offer from Bain which would have seen them receive a paltry £100 each.
LV on Monday said it had appointed Seamus Creedon as interim chair who said the company would continue discussions with Royal London “about if and how we can co-operate to the benefit of both sets of members and the mutual sector”.
Outgoing chairman Alan Cook, who announced his departure last December after members rejected his demutualisation plan, accused Royal London last year of trying to destabilise Bain’s bid.
There have been calls for chief executive Mark Hartigan to step down, but on Monday he received the backing of Creedon who said the CEO “has been doing an excellent job in strengthening the performance of the business”.
“The board takes full responsibility for the unsuccessful transaction which Mark actively advocated on its behalf and my colleagues and I have high confidence in him and his team.”
“We felt it right to take time to understand the message members gave the board. Put simply, our members told us that what they viewed as the modest financial advantages of the transaction, were not worth the loss of ownership and voting rights for our million-plus members.”
