Update: Insignia sets deadline as private equity giants battle for $2bn takeover

Insignia Financial Ltd. set a deadline for binding takeover offers from private equity firms Bain Capital, CC Capital Partners, and Brookfield Asset Management’s UK unit, with bids due by the end of the month.

The Australian pension manager has engaged with the investment firms in recent weeks as they pursue a take-private deal valued at approximately A$3.1bn ($2bn), according to sources familiar with the matter.

Despite Brookfield’s late entry into the contest, Insignia has not extended the bidding timeline. Each of the three firms has put forward preliminary offers of A$4.60 per share. Representatives for Insignia, Bain, CC Capital, and Brookfield declined to comment.

Insignia, which traces its origins back to 1846, operates in financial advisory and retirement savings management. The firm sees affluent Australians as a key target market within the country’s rapidly expanding A$4tn pension industry.

A successful acquisition would allow the winning bidder to streamline costs and restructure Insignia’s debt. The deal also presents a significant opportunity for an international private equity firm to gain a stronger foothold in Australia’s financial services sector.