Australian wealth manager Insignia Financial Ltd. has received an A$2.9 billion takeover offer ($1.8 billion) from CC Capital Partners, the fast-growing family office created by former Blackstone Inc. dealmaker Chinh Chu.
The preliminary cash offer of $2.60 per share is a 7.5% premium to a previous offer of $2.4 per share from private equity firm Bain Capital.which Insignia rejected last month, according to a statement from the Australian fund manager on Monday.
The proposal is subject to Insignia granting CC Capital an exclusive audit, a move the company said it will consider but has not yet made a decision on. The offer is non-binding and may not result in a final proposal, Insignia said. Any deal would also need foreign investment and regulatory approval.
CC Capital is an insurance and asset management company that Chu, who left Blackstone in 2015, has begun assembling following the model of Apollo Global Management Inc. He has created at least five blank check vehicles that closed deals to take several companies public, including Getty Images and snack maker Utz Brands.
The new search by CC Capital, which manages Chu’s personal assetsis further evidence of growing interest by foreign private equity players in acquiring Australian wealth managers for their exposure to one of the world’s fastest growing pension funds, with assets of A$4.1 trillion (U.S. $2.55 billion).
