Private Equity News & Analysis

UK lender rejects Bridgepoint, Apollo, Blackstone buyout bid

The failed bid marks the second time this year that a private-equity backed rescue of a struggling UK-based mortgage lender has fallen apart.

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Paragon, a UK-based buy-to-let mortgage lender, has rejected a £373 million (€469 million, $670 million) takeover bid by private equity firms Bridgepoint, Apollo Global Management and The Blackstone Group.

The company’s board, advised by UBS, said the 125 pence per share offer was not acceptable after talking with the company’s shareholders. The company’s shares tumbled 15 percent after the bid rejection was announced.

The company’s CEO, Nigel Terrington, said Paragon is fully funded until 2017 and has no need of a rescue.

Paragon’s rejection marks the second time this year that a private equity deal with a British buy-to-let mortgage lender fell apart. In July, US buyout firm TPG Capital pulled out of a £179 million deal with UK-based Bradford & Bingley, a struggling bank, after Moody’s said it would cut the bank’s rating because of fears of a decline in the UK housing market.