LV in race to save US deal
INSURER TRIES TO WIN OVER MEMBERS
BOSSES at insurance giant LV yesterday launched a fresh bid to rescue a controversial £530million takeover by a US private equity giant.
LV’s board has faced a backlash after recommending a sale to Bain Capital.
Under the proposed deal, LV’s 1.1million members would get a one-off £100 each, and its near 300,000 “with profit” policyholders would land enhanced payouts. A crunch vote has been scheduled for December 10.
With opposition to the deal mounting, LV yesterday issued a statement detailing why executives judged Bain’s offer the best out of a dozen it received.
Senior independent director David Barral said: “We all came to the firm conclusion it would not be fair for us to ask our with-profit members to finance a future that requires significant investment, which many would not benefit from.”
LV said the sale of its general insurance business to Allianz was needed to “restore its capital position”.
But it claims the proceeds, paid in 2017 and 2019, was not enough to properly grow LV’s life and pensions business. LV said Bain’s offer was the only one to preserve the “brand, heritage and values” of the mutual, including its offices in Bournemouth, Hitchin and Exeter. Rival mutual Royal London has attempted to gatecrash the deal but LV said the proposal would see the business split up and result in redundancies.
LV, formerly Liverpool Victoria, can trace its roots back to 1843. For decades it was known for its “penny policies”, simple life insurance designed to cover people’s funeral costs.