Sampo’s Storebrand Offer Blocked by Bank Stake

Finnish insurer Sampo’s bid for Norway’s leading insurance company, Storebrand, has apparently been blocked by Den Norske Bank’s acquisition of 9.76 percent of the company’s outstanding shares.

Sampo topped the bank’s offer for Storebrand last May, and, despite objections from the Norwegian government, was expected to succeed, but, as any merger agreement would require the consent of 90 percent of Storebrand’s shareholders, Den Norske’s stake effectively blocks the takeover.

It would also disrupt plans to merge it’s p/c business and Storebrand’s into “If,” the Scandinavian insurer, which is jointly owned by Sampo, Storebrand and Sweden’s Skandia to create the region’s largest p/c insurer.