R&Q Insurance mulling liquidation to complete Accredited sale process

R&Q Insurance has said that it is considering a provisional liquidation as it pushes forward to complete a sale of its program management business, Accredited, to Onex Corporation – causing shares to plummet on Thursday.

The company said that it has incurred significant unexpected costs and expenses in recent weeks which, along with "further adverse reserve development and a degree of general stress", has materially impacted the company's stability as a business and as a going concern.

Discussions with Onex about a potential sale of Accredited, through R&Q's 100% equity interest in holding company Randall & Quilter America Holding, have been ongoing since October 2023.

Among the options discussed is the provisional liquidation of R&Q Insurance in Bermuda and then completing the sale of Accredited to Onex through that process. It would also request to suspend trading in shares on the AIM market.

"The directors believe that in such circumstances there would be very little, if any, chance of any value accruing to the company's shareholders," R&Q announced.

In the event that a sale does not materialise, the company would be unable to repay its debt facilities and would therefore be unable to continue trading.

By 1305 BST, the stock was down 82% at 0.34p, taking the year-to-date fall to 97%.