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New Star Asset Management, the troubled fund manager founded by John Duffield, said today that it has received several indicative bids from rival investment houses.
The firm put out a statement to the London Stock Exchange this morning after speculation that rivals including Schroders had approached the company.
New Star hired investment bank UBS last month to find a buyer. After a radical restructuring which involved a debt-for-equity swap, a consortium of banks led by HBOS owns most of the shares.
New Star said this morning that it had received indicative proposals from a number of parties, which depended on its restructuring taking effect. "These expressions of interest are being considered," the firm said.
Schroders is considered a frontrunner with a cash surplus of about £700m. Henderson, Neptune Investment Management, Aberdeen Asset Management and Threadneedle are thought to have made indicative bids, the Sunday Telegraph reported at the weekend. Hellman & Friedman, the private equity firm, is also believed to be interested.
The bids are reportedly worth more than £100m, although New Star's stockmarket value is just under £8m.
New Star was forced to suspend dealings in several unit trusts after investors made huge withdrawals, and has seen its shares plummet.
The shares are worth just under 3p after hitting a low of 0.5p in early December, compared with 240p a year ago.
"Given the company's current and proposed capital structure (following the completion of the restructuring), it is not certain that any such transaction will lead to a significant return, if any, to current shareholders," New Star warned.
The firm is expected to delist from the stock exchange following the restructuring.
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