British banknote printer poised for US sale after snubbing ex-Tory donor
Banknote printer De La Rue has accepted a £263m takeover bid from US private equity firm Atlas after snubbing a separate approach from ex-Tory donor Edi Truell.
The Basingstoke-based company, which prints money for the Bank of England, has confirmed plans to back Atlas's offer, in a move that will see it taken private from the London Stock Exchange.
That is despite Mr Truell lodging an eleventh-hour offer worth £267m through his investment funds, Disruptive Capital and Pension SuperFund Capital, which would have required the business to sell off its passport printing arm.
It marks an escalating bidding war for De La Rue, which has had a low valuation since it lost its contract to print British passports to Dutch-based rival Gemalto in 2018.
Shares in De La Rue jumped by 16pc in response to the latest announcement, taking the company's market cap up to £253m.
Meanwhile, Atlas's offer marks a 19pc premium on the company's valuation on Dec 11, which was before any takeover bids had been launched for the 211-year-old firm.
Mr Truell previously tabled a 125p per share offer in January, although this has been increased to 132p.
A De La Rue spokesman said the board had considered Mr Truell's latest offer last night but concluded that it lacked 'committed financing'. Concerns were also raised over its 'deliverability'.
As a result, the company has recommended that shareholders accept Atlas's offer.
Mr Truell, a Brexit-supporting City financier, started private equity firm Disruptive Capital Finance in 2008 after building a business empire with his late brother Daniel.
He was previously a major donor to the Conservatives but announced plans in 2016 to withdraw his funding from the party over David Cameron's handling of the EU referendum.
If approved by shareholders, Atlas' takeover of De La Rue will see it join a portfolio of 27 separate businesses owned by the private equity firm, which is headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut.
Atlas was first founded in 2002 by Andrew Bursky and Tim Fazio, two former colleagues at private equity firm Pegasus.
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