Ageas does not expect hostile takeover bid (translated)
09 AUG 2018
The Belgian insurance company Ageas (EURONEXT:AGS) is not expecting a hostile takeover bid, Ageas CEO Bart de Smet told the Belgian daily De Tijd in an interview.
A recent report said that Ageas is being eyed by the Chinese conglomerate Fosun, a company that already owns a 3.10% stake in Ageas. De Smet said that these are only rumours and that he has not received any notification that Fosun is working on a bid.
De Smet also said that such rumours show that Ageas is an interesting and a vulnerable company when it comes to takeovers.
Such takeovers may now become more attractive, because Ageas has just settled a disagreement with investors from Fortis, a Belgian bank that closed down in 2010 due to financial problems and of which Ageas was a part, the report said.