AMP and Virgin at loggerheads over III purchase
AMP is at loggerheads with Richard Branson’s Virgin group following the insurers $A142 million takeover of financial website Interactive Investor International (III) earlier this week.
AMP is in partnership with Virgin in the UK and is involved with the latter’s financial services offerings, Virgin Direct and Virginmoney.com. However it is believed AMP is close to completing a year-long review, with shareholders urging AMP to abandon the five-year-old Virgin Direct project. The two companies have been at odds for more than a year over the joint ventures, with AMP wanting to float the businesses.
According to British newspaper The Guardian, AMP’s takeover of III indicates the group is now willing to pour its resources into the financial website and its new financial services portal Ample. An announcement on the results of the review were understood to be imminent.
But Virgin has ambitious plans for its financial services and believes it can still persuade AMP to partner it in a global roll-out, most likely under the Virginmoney.com brand.
Virgin believes III could provide the technological backbone needed to build a global portal targeting Europe, the Far East and Australasia.
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