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Permira buys Just Retirement

LONDON
Fri Sep 25, 2009 2:58am EDT

LONDON (Reuters) - Specialist life insurer Just Retirement JR.L has agreed to be taken over by private equity company Permira in a 225.5 million pound cash deal. Permira-backed bid vehicle Avalon Acquisitions will pay 76 pence per share for Just Retirement and also inject 25 million pounds into the company after the takeover via a capital increase.

Just Retirement, which sells investment products to people in or approaching retirement, first revealed it had received bid approaches in November last year and said earlier this year that it was working towards a deal with Permira.

The price per share is 9.4 percent above Thursday's closing price but almost half the 148 pence per share that the company floated at in November 2006.

The deal also includes a securities alternative, under which shareholders can opt to receive one non-listed unit for every 10 Just Retirement shares in order to retain an interest in the firm.

Just Retirement also reported results for the year to June 30, showing European Embedded Value (EEV) underlying pretax operating profit of 79.4 million pounds, up 20 percent on the previous year, and said current trading was very satisfactory.

(Reporting by Victoria Bryan)


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