Allen & Overy is lead counsel to the consortium, made up of Finnish insurer Sampo and South Africa’s Rand Merchant Investment (RMI), on its recommended cash offer for Hastings Group Holdings plc (Hastings), the UK insurance company. In addition, A&O is advising Sampo on its bond financing for the transaction.
The consortium today announced an offer of 250p per share for the shares in Hastings not already owned, valuing Hastings at £1.66 billion.
This transaction continues A&O’s association with Hastings, having advised the sponsor and the bookrunners on the group’s IPO in September 2015 and RMI on its acquisition of a 29.7 per cent stake in the group in 2017.
The multi-practice A&O team advising the consortium was led by M&A partner Seth Jones and included partners Richard Hough (M&A), Philip Jarvis (insurance), Tom Grant (financing), Alasdair Balfour (antitrust) and Paul McCarthy (incentives), senior associates Matthew Hamilton-Foyn, Monika Przygoda, Joseph Kamyar and Marcus Gwyer, associates Preethi Correa and Ben Brooks, (all London-based) and partner Lionel Shawe in Johannesburg.
