A Canadian pension fund is set to buy a FTSE 250 investment firm for £1billion in the latest blow to London's stock market. 

BCI has agreed to pay 147.5p a share for BBGI Global Infrastructure, the firms said yesterday. 

Shares in BBGI, an infrastructure fund that owns roads, schools and hospitals in the UK, Europe, North America and Australia, jumped 17.2 per cent, or 21p, to 142.8p – their highest since June 2023. 

The fund, whose UK assets include the M80 motorway and North West Fire and Rescue, is the latest London-listed firm to be targeted by an overseas buyer amid what analysts have called a 'takeover frenzy'. 

Last week Dowlais, the automotive unit spun out of GKN in 2023, agreed to be bought by US rival American Axle for £1.2billion.

And the takeover of Royal Mail owner International Distribution Services by Czech Daniel Kretinsky is set to be completed later this year. 

The latest figures show that British companies worth £145billion were snapped up last year, with more than half of the sum involving foreign buyers.

They include the £3.3billion sale of Robinsons squash maker Britvic to Danish brewer Carlsberg and the £4.3billion acquisition of cybersecurity firm Darktrace by US private equity firm Thoma Bravo. 

Buyers have been taking advantage of bargain-basement valuations to snap up London-listed firms. 

There has also been a dearth of new listings to replace the exits. Investment bank Peel Hunt has warned Britain faces 'a swarm of takeovers' this year. 

BBGI's board has recommended shareholders back the acquisition by BCI. The offer, which values it at £1.06billion, is a 21.1 per cent premium to BBGI's share price on Wednesday before the bid was made public. 

BBGI chief executive Duncan Ball said that the board was 'confident that BBGI can continue to deliver sustainable cash flows to shareholders' but said that the offer 'provides shareholders with the opportunity to realise the value of their holdings in cash, at an attractive value'. 

BCI, which has around £141billion of assets under management, previously bought Compre, a London specialist in non-life insurance portfolios, with private equity firm Cinven in 2020.