Admiral stops sale of Confused.com
by Kay Murchie
Confused.com, which was put up for sale 6 weeks ago by Admiral, said that discussions with a number of potential investors were held and suggested offers were submitted valuing the business between £600 million and £650 million.
However, Admiral, the car insurer, has pulled out of the sale saying that private equity buyers demanded too much control. In addition, the company said it would jeopardise its decision making and capability to increase the website’s potential. The board believes that it’s in everyone’s best interests, including shareholders to keep a 100% interest in confused.com.
The collapse of the sale, managed by Merrill Lynch, is a delay for Admiral. The funds would have been invested to develop the business. Admiral is a FTSE 250 group worth £2.4 billion and after the announcement, shares fell 6% but recovered to trade 31p or 3.4 per cent lower at 859p.
Confused.com started out in 2001 as a price comparison service for motor insurance, but has since branched out into home insurance, credit cards and loans.
The breakdown of the deal comes just hours after moneysupermarket.com (a more general financial services website) set an initial price range for shares in its flotation that value the business up to £1 billion.
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