French broker Oddo takes on China's Fosun with BHF Kleinwort bid

French independent financial services company Oddo & Cie on Friday said it was planning to make an offer for asset manager BHF Kleinwort Benson, rivalling an existing bid from Chinese giant Fosun. Oddo is offering 5.75 euros ($6.08) per share for Belgian-owned owned BHF Kleinwort Benson, whose main activities are private banking and asset management. It values BHF at 760 million euros. That compares with a 5.10 euro bid that Fosun put on the table in July. Oddo already holds a 21.57 percent stake in BHF and said in a statement it was prepared to acquire more than 50 percent of the company after reaching an agreement with two other shareholders, the Franklin Templeton and Aqton groups. However, Oddo still needs a green light from banking regulatory authorities to proceed with its bid. Media reports have said BHF had been hoping Oddo would enter the fray as a "white knight" to rescue it from coming under the control of the Fosun conglomerate which has been aggressively buying into European financial services. The Frankfurt-based BHF Kleinwort Benson, formerly RHJ International, specialises in private banking and asset management, but is also involved in activities tied to the financial markets and the financing of businesses. It had assets valued at 58.5 billion euros under management as of June 30. The acquisition of BHF "would represent a major step for the group," said Philippe Oddo in a statement. The French broker is 60 percent held by the Oddo family. Oddo has been pursuing an acquisition strategy for several months, taking hold of two German groups, asset manager Meriten Investment Management and the bank Close Brothers Seydler.