Australian diversified investment firm Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company (WHSP) has raised its stake in Perpetual Ltd to 11.66%, as disclosed in a recent exchange filing. The move comes after Perpetual rejected WHSP’s A$3.1 billion ($2.04 billion) takeover offer last week, asserting that the proposal undervalued its business.
As of December 6, the day the takeover offer was initiated, WHSP held a nearly 10% stake in Perpetual. The rejection of the takeover offer by Perpetual occurred amid a period of consolidation in the Australian wealth management sector. Perpetual had previously acquired rival Pendal for A$2.5 billion earlier in the year, reflecting a broader trend of mergers and acquisitions in the Australian wealth management market.