The family behind Argus Media is lining up a £500m payday from the sale of the oil information company, as private equity firms prepare bids. At least nine members of the Nasmyth family own around 50pc of Argus Media, according to Companies House documents. They are seeking to sell up for as much as £1bn and are poised to receive bids from buy-out firms including Hellman & Friedman and KKR, City sources said, while commodities exchanges are also circling.
London-headquartered Argus, which has 700 staff, put itself up for sale last year by appointing Bank of America Merrill Lynch to advise on the best way to cash in.
It is understood the move followed a disagreement between Nasmyth family members, who want to liquidate their asset, and Argus’s then-chief executive Adrian Binks, also a major shareholder.
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