Quindell confirms capital return plans and Watchstone rebrand

Insurance technology group Quindell outlined its capital return plans on Monday and said it was seeking shareholder approval to rebrand itself as Watchstone Group.

The company, which is currently being investigated by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) over its accounting policies, said it will return £414m or around 90p per share in aggregate to shareholders.

Following the capital return, in addition to its operating businesses, Quindell expects to retain around £90m in cash.

The company, which recently completed an acquisition of a Canadian physiotherapy company, said shareholders will vote on the name change and capital return at a meeting in London on 26 November.

Although Quindell did not give any reason for the name change, it is likely the move is an attempt to distance itself from its recent boardroom issues and mixed reputation with investors since a legal battle against New York analyst firm Gotham City.

The SFO announced that it was launching an investigation into Quindell after its new management team said in August that the £107m pre-tax profit reported in 2013 had been misstated and the company had actually experienced a £64m loss.

Shares in Quindell were up 1.3% to 99p by late afternoon on Monday.