Polygon Investment Partners has increased its stake in Countrywide, the UK’s biggest estate agency, giving it the option of derailing an agreed £1bn takeover. The hedge fund said on Monday that it had increased its interest from 14.6 to 22.7 per cent via contracts for difference traded on Friday at 590p and 599p. Polygon’s stake would almost certainly be sufficient to vote down an agreed offer by Apollo, the US private equity group, at an extraordinary meeting next month – the deal requires the support of 75 per cent of shareholders.

This entry was posted by Gwen Robinson on Tuesday, March 27th, 2007 at 5:37 and is filed under Capital markets, Hedge funds, M&A, Private equity. Tagged with apollo, countrywide, polygon. Edit this entry.