UPDATE 1-Britsh insurer LV= members reject $700 mln Bain takeover

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Dec 10 (Reuters) – British mutual life insurer LV= on Friday said the company’s proposed 530 million pound ($701 million) takeover by private equity giant Bain Capital would not take place after member votes at a special meeting fell short of the requisite majority.

The insurer said it was identifying possible next steps and looking at alternative options for the business. Once a way forward has been determined, Chairman Alan Cook intended to step down from his role, he said in a statement.

“We will continue to do everything possible to find a solution that can deliver a continuation of the LV= brand and security for our 1,300 employees,” he said.

The deal had faced resistance from many of the 1.2 million members who currently own LV=, who said they were not being sufficiently compensated for the loss of the insurer’s mutual status.

The deal would have given its members 100 pounds each if it had gone ahead.

A lawmakers’ report in April said it was very difficult for LV= members to assess if demutualisation was in their best interests or not.

LV= needed 75% of members who voted to support the deal but only 69% voted for it. ($1 = 0.7561 pounds) (Reporting by Pushkala Aripaka in Bengaluru and Carolyn Cohn in London; Editing by Louise Heavens)

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