Challenger Ltd.董事会拒绝了第一生命保险株式会社44亿美元的收购要约，称其打算与这家日本保险公司的澳大利亚子公司接触，看是否能达成董事会可以推荐的提案。
Ltd.’s board rejected a $4.4 billion offer from Daiichi Life Group Inc., saying it intends to engage with the Japanese insurer’s Australian unit to see whether a proposal can be reached that the board can recommend.
根据周一的一份声明，Challenger表示，在TAL第一生命澳大利亚公司提出的指示性出价未达到其可向股东推荐的水平后，不确定是否会出现具有约束力的要约或交易。
Challenger said there’s no certainty that a binding offer or transaction will materialize, after an indicative bid from TAL Daiichi Life Australia wasn’t at a level it could recommend to shareholders, according to a statement Monday.
第一生命的澳大利亚子公司上周提出以每股11.80澳元收购Challenger剩余79.5%的股份，将这家金融公司估值约为79亿澳元（约合55亿美元）。
Daiichi Life’s Australian unit last week offered to buy the remaining 79.5% of Challenger at A$11.80 per share, valuing the financial firm at about A$7.9 billion ($5.5 billion).
彭博情报分析师Matt Ingram表示，Challenger的分部估值之和高于出价。他在周一写道：“修正后的每股12.50至13澳元的出价可能更容易被董事会接受。”周一Challenger和第一生命的股价变化不大。
Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Matt Ingram said Challenger’s sum-of-the-parts is above the bid. “A revised offer of A$12.50-A$13 per share might be more agreeable” to the board, he wrote Monday. Shares of Challenger and Daiichi Life were little changed on Monday.
随着国内人口萎缩制约增长，日本保险公司一直在海外进行收购。第一生命和住友生命保险公司曾是汇丰控股新加坡保险业务的竞标者之一，但最终安联成为买家。Sompo Holdings Inc.今年早些时候以约35亿美元收购了Aspen Insurance Holdings Ltd.。
Japanese insurers have been making acquisitions overseas as a shrinking population constrains growth at home. Daiichi Life and Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. were among bidders for the Singaporean insurance unit of HSBC Holdings Plc, though Allianz SE eventually emerged as the buyer. Sompo Holdings Inc. bought Aspen Insurance Holdings Ltd. for about $3.5 billion earlier this year.
根据其网站，Challenger成立于1985年，截至3月底管理资产约1280亿澳元。该公司是澳大利亚退休金市场最大的年金提供商。
Established in 1985, Challenger managed about A$128 billion in assets as of the end of March, according to its website. The company is Australia’s largest provider of annuities in the nation’s retirement market.