Thistle loses takeover fight

Thistle Hotels, London's biggest hotel operator, lost its battle for independence last week when it reluctantly agreed to a £627m takeover bid from its biggest shareholder, Singapore investment firm BIL International.

It had been pursuing a hostile bid at 115p a share until last Wednesday, when it raised its offer to 130p a share.

Thistle said it thought the offer still did not reflect the true value of the company. But as BIL, which already owned 45.6% of Thistle, had won the support needed to win control of the company, it was forced to recommend a takeover.

Analyst Peter Joseph, at KBC Peel Hunt, said he expected many of the company's shareholders were feeling "hard done by". BIL now intends to delist Thistle shares, which would leave remaining shareholders in an unlisted company controlled by BIL. The takeover is likely to lead to senior management changes at Thistle, including the departure of chief executive Ian Burke.