Law firm duo advise on US private equity offer for UK insurer Brit

Sullivan & Cromwell and Macfarlanes have scored lead roles on US private equity group Apollo's $1.3bn (£835m) offer for Brit Insurance.

Sullivan is advising Apollo on the bid with a team led by corporate partners Tim Emmerson (pictured), Ben Perry and Nikolaos Andronikos, alongside finance partner Neal McKnight and European counsel Rajan Subberwal.

Emmerson commented: "The deal is interesting because the UK and Dutch takeover panels have shared jurisdiction over it and Brit Insurance is quite a complex insurance business."

He added: "Apollo is a highly sophisticated private equity firm which is unequivocal about what they want to achieve and very clear on how they want to go about it. Those attributes make them both a pleasure and a challenge to advise. It is fascinating to be working with them on one of the largest potential take-privates we have seen in London for some time."

Brit Insurance has instructed Macfarlanes, with the City firm fielding a team led by corporate partner Graham Gibb and senior partner Charles Martin.

The price, which values the insurance company at £835m, includes the 30p-per-share Brit pledged to shareholders as it delivered its interim results.

Apollo has submitted bids of £10 and £10.50 a share in recent weeks but the board has rejected those offers as undervaluing the company.

The deal would mark a major take-private for Apollo, which is increasing its focus in the financial services and commodities sectors.

The instruction for Sullivan comes just two weeks after the US law firm announced its lead role on the e1.2bn (£1.07bn) sale of manufacturing company Ontex to Goldman Sachs and TPG Capital, a deal which also handed roles to Ashurst and Ropes & Gray.

Last year Hammonds won Brit Insurance as a new client and advised the company on its four-year sponsorship mandate from the England and Wales Cricket Board.

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