By Samuel Indyk
Investing.com – Phoenix Group (LON:PHNX) announced on Wednesday that Swiss Re (SIX:SRENH) had offloaded a 6.6% stake for £437mln, selling half of its holdings it acquired when it sold its ReAssure subsidiary to Phoenix.
Following the settlement of the transaction, Swiss Re’s holding in Phoenix will be approximately 6.6%.
As a result of the stake falling below 10%, the relationship agreement will cease to be effective and Swiss Re shall no longer be entitled to appoint a non-executive director to the Phoenix board. As a result of this, Christopher Minter will resign from the board with effect from settlement of the shares sold by Swiss Re which is expected by Friday.
“On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank both Christopher for the significant contribution he has made since joining the Board in July 2020 and Swiss Re for its support during its time as a significant strategic shareholder,” said Phoenix Group Chairman Nicholas Lyons.
Background
Swiss Re sold its ReAssure Group unit to Phoenix Group last July for GBP 3.25bln. Under the terms, Swiss Re had a 12-month lock-up period, under which it was not supposed to sell its shares received as part of the unit sale.
However, the Phoenix board provided its consent to Swiss Re to proceed with this transaction in advance of the 12-month lock-up period that was agreed as part of the relationship agreement.
Swiss Re has agreed with its bookrunners to a separate lock-up of 90 days following the sale in respect of its residual holding in Phoenix, subject to waiver by the bookrunners.
MS&AD (T:8725), who also received Phoenix shares as part of the ReAssure transaction, continues to retain a 14.5% stake in Phoenix. Phoenix noted that MS&AD is committed to its strategic relationship with Phoenix and expects to remain a significant shareholder.
At 09:59BST, shares in Phoenix Group were trading lower by 2.2% at 678.5 pence per share. Swiss Re shares were trading 0.2% higher at CHF 85.22.