An American private equity group has made its second attempted foray into British financial services in 24 hours, bidding for an Australian-listed group that is a big player in funds administration in the UK.
The Sydney-listed Link Group said that it had received a non-binding A$2.8 billion (£1.5 billion) approach from Carlyle, hours after Metro Bank disclosed that it, too, was in talks about an offer from Carlyle.
Link provides administration services for fund managers in Britain and is being sued by former investors in the biggest fund of Neil Woodford, which it was in charge of administering.
It is the second attempt by Carlyle to buy Link. It and Pacific Equity Partners were rebuffed last year when they made a A$2.9 billion offer. Link said that it was considering the new bid, which was pitched at a 24 per cent premium to the undisturbed Link share price.
Link is a big player in pension and funds administration, with 6,000 clients serving 70 million pension fund members and investors. Its fund solutions business in the UK administers more than £100 billion of assets.
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It administered Woodford’s main Equity Income Fund, which was worth more than £10 billion at its peak, and has been responsible for winding up the fund since its implosion in 2019. It also administered the smaller Income Focus Fund and Woodford’s Patient Capital investment trust.
Leigh Day, the law firm that has begun court proceedings against Link, alleges that it was in breach of Financial Conduct Authority rules in the way it managed and monitored the fund and that this led to the fund’s collapse, causing ordinary investors loss and damage. Link denies the allegations.
