London – LAWFUEL – The Law Newswire – Allen & Overy LLP is advising Misys plc on the sale of its independent financial advisers support services business, Sesame, to Friends Provident plc, for gross proceeds expected to be in excess of GBP90 million. Sesame is one of the largest providers of support services to financial advisers in the UK, including regulatory compliance, training, research and technology.
The sale follows Misys’ announcement in March, as part of its overall strategy review, that it had signed a non-binding heads of agreement to sell a majority stake in Sesame to its management team. Subsequent to that, Misys received a proposal from Friends Provident which the Board viewed as more attractive for shareholders.
The transaction is an important strategic step for Misys, enabling it to focus solely on driving profitability and growth in its core software and solutions businesses.
As Sesame is a regulated business, the sale is conditional on receiving change of control consent from the Financial Services Authority.
The Allen & Overy team is being led by partner Gillian Holgate and senior associate George Knighton, assisted by associates Andrew Davis and Anna Macleod-Smith.
Commenting, Gillian Holgate said: “Allen & Overy has acted for Misys for many years and we are delighted to have assisted them on this latest, strategic transaction.”
