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Brookfield Asset Management has moved to secure a position in the battle for control of Insignia Financial (ASX: IFL) after putting forward a $3 billion offer that matches the price of separate proposals by US private equity groups Bain Capital and CC Capital Partners.
The New York-headquartered group’s Brookfield Capital Partners (UK) is offering $4.60 per share for Insignia Financial, one of Australia’s largest wealth management companies
However, Brookfield has sought - and been granted - approval by Insignia for access to publicly unavailable information that could potentially lead to an increased offer.
Under the proposal put forward by Brookfield, Insignia shareholders can opt to take $4.60 cash for their shares or part of the payment can be made in shares of Brookfield’s unlisted bid vehicle.
Insignia notes that the offer price put forward by Brookfield is the same as CC Capital Partners’ revised indicative proposal received on 17 January 2025 and that of Bain Capital in its second revised non-binding indicative proposal received five days later.
“In order to determine if Brookfield is able to formulate an improved proposal from that reflected in the indicative proposal, Insignia Financial will offer to provide to Brookfield a limited period of access to certain non-public information on a non-exclusive basis,” says Insignia.
“The provision of this information will be subject to certain conditions, including the signing of an appropriate confidentiality and standstill agreement by Brookfield.”
Insignia points out that providing Brookfield with limited due diligence doesn’t guarantee that it will lead to a binding offer or one that can be recommended by the board.
Bain Capital triggered the three-way standoff for control of Insignia Financia after initially launching a $2.68 billion offer for the group in December with an indicative price of $4 per share. That offer was rejected by the Insignia board on 18 December 2024, the day after the offer was announced.
A subsequent increase in the offer price by Bain Capital to $4.30 drew competition from CC Capital Partners which lobbed a $4.60-per-share bid – a price that Bain has since matched.
As with the other indicative offers currently on the table, a Brookfield takeover remains subject to several conditions including approvals by the Foreign Investment Review Board and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority.
The battle for control of Insignia Financial comes on the heels of a solid performance by the group which saw underlying net profit after tax increase 13.6 per cent to $216.6 million in FY24.
In a December-quarter update to the market late last month, Insignia posted a $7.2 billion increase in funds under management and administration to $326.8 billion.
Insignia Financial’s shares were trading at $4.56, up 24c, at 10.56am (AEDT).
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