Guardian still confident of Zenith sale

Guardian Holdings, the parent company of Zenith Insurance, remains hopeful of concluding a deal to sell the troubled motor insurer.

Guardian chief executive Jeff Mack told Insurance Times that it was still in discussions with potential purchasers.

“We are still hopeful of hitting our deadline, which is to have an agreement in principle by the end of the year,” he said.

Failure to seal a deal could lead to the Gibraltar-based business being placed in to run-off.

A management buy-out led by Zenith chief executive Peter Austin is believed to have fallen through while a number of trade buyers, including Odyssey Re - which has links to Gibraltar-based motor specialist Markerstudy - have also been mooted.

Last month, Guardian chairman Arthur Lok Jack wrote a letter to shareholders in which he explained the group’s decision to write-off its investment in the underperforming Zenith.

“While the write-off of the Zenith operation was largely a non-cash transaction, any proceeds from its eventual sale will have a positive cash effect. We expect to complete the final disposition of Zenith by the end of this year,” he said.