Zurich to buy UK rival Beazley for £8 billion

Swiss insurance firm Zurich has agreed to buy UK rival Beazley in an £8 billion takeover deal.

Zurich will pay £13.10 in cash per share to Beazley and shareholders will receive a 25p dividend as part of the takeover deal.

The London-listed specialist insurer, Beazley said, “The board of Beazley has carefully considered the proposal, together with its advisers.

“The board has concluded that the financial terms of the proposal are at a level that it would be minded to recommend to Beazley shareholders should a firm intention to make an offer be announced.”

In a joint statement, the firms said, “The transaction would combine two highly complementary businesses and would establish a leading, global specialty platform with around 15 billion US dollars (£11 billion) of gross written premiums, based in the UK which would also leverage Beazley’s Lloyd’s of London presence.”