New, smaller bid from Canopius

The 18-month battle for control of Omega, the Lloyd's of London insurer, took another twist yesterday when its rival Canopius approached with a £156m takeover offer.

The cash bid of 65p a sharefollows two earlier offers from Canopius, which made an 83p-a-share cash approach in September, the day after Haverford, a Bermuda-based vehicle, started talks to buy a quarter of Omega at up to 83p a share. Omega shares closed at 63p yesterday.