Apex and CSC Said to Weigh Rival Offers for Intertrust

(Bloomberg) -- Apex Group Ltd. and CSC Global are considering making rival takeover offers for the 1.9 billion-euro ($2.1 billion) Dutch tax and administration specialist Intertrust NV, according to people familiar with the matter. 

The business solutions firms are in discussions about launching formal bids, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information. Deliberations are ongoing and there’s no certainty either firm will decide to proceed with offers, the people said. 

Representatives for Apex and Intertrust declined to comment, while a spokesperson for CSC couldn’t immediately provide comment.

Shares in Intertrust rose as much as 3.7% on Thursday to hit their highest level in more than five years. The stock was up 1.5% at 20.80 euros at 2:56 p.m. in Amsterdam.

Earlier this month, Intertrust said it had entered exclusive talks with funds advised by CVC Capital Partners, which made an indicative offer of 18 euros a share in cash. The bid values the Dutch firm at around 1.63 billion euros, according to Bloomberg calculations. CVC is contemplating merging Intertrust and TMF Group BV, a multinational professional services business that it owns.

Intertrust said this week that it’d received multiple expressions of interest since announcing the CVC discussions. It said each of these parties had submitted conditional, non-binding proposals ranging up to 22 euros per share in price, without identifying them by name.

Netherlands-based Intertrust provides administration services to companies across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and the Americas, according to its website. Its clients include hedge funds, private equity firms and wealth manages and it offers everything from regulatory support and fund accounting to tax reporting and succession planning.

Buyout firm Blackstone Inc. bought Intertrust in 2012 before listing it via an initial public offering three years later. Intertrust’s shares have risen by about a third since then.

Apex, backed by private equity firm Genstar Capital, in August agreed to acquire U.K.-listed asset management services provider Sanne Group Plc for about 1.5 billion pounds ($2 billion). Last month, it completed its purchase of Mainstream Group, the Australia-based fund administration provider.

U.S.-based CSC offers compliance and legal services, among others, to businesses across the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific. 

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