Fairfax completes Brit acquisition

Financial services company Fairfax has completed its £1.22 billion acquisition of re/insurer Brit.

Brit shareholders received 305p in cash per share, inclusive of the expected 2014 final dividend.

The Canadian company now owns 70.1 percent of the reinsurer, following the sale of 29.9 percent of the Brit shares to Canadian pension fund Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (Omers).

Omers acquired the shares for a price of $4.30 per share, a rate which is equivalent to the cash amount under the offer based on the exchange rate on February 17, 2015.

Fairfax entered into a C$650 million ($521 million) deal with a syndicate of underwriters led by BMO Capital Markets to part fund its acquisition of Brit.