Joe Lewis, the Bahamas-based British billionaire who recently became the biggest shareholder in Bear Stearns with a near-7% stake, is unlikely to take an activist approach and could reduce his position in Bear in the near term if the shares rise significantly, say people familiar with his thinking. Bear disclosed in a regulatory filing on Monday that Mr Lewis, who has a long-time relationship with Jimmy Cayne, Bear’s chief executive, had bought about 8.1m Bear shares. Bear shares have risen about 4% since the bank disclosed Mr Lewis’s stake but are down about 30% this year. Analysts said the market reaction was not more positive because investors would have preferred a large financial institution to take an equity stake in Bear.
