Haversham confirms speculation about a "substantial acquisition"

According to reports, Haversham is looking to spend £1.2bn on buying Europe's largest used-car dealership, British Car Auctions (BCA), which operates the well-known webuyanycare.com brand.

BCA shelved plans to raise £200m in a flotation last October amid market volatility.

Haversham said it is in "very advanced discussions which might lead to a transaction", but did not officially name BCA.

The deal, if completed, would constitute a reverse takeover under AIM rules and therefore Haversham's shares were suspending from trading on Monday.

"There can be no certainty at this time that a transaction will proceed and we will update shareholders in due course," the group said.

London-listed Cenkos Securities, which counts Haversham as one of its corporate clients, also confirmed the reports and said it would be supporting Haversham with a fund raising.

"Should the fundraising associated with the reported transaction take place, it could have a material impact on the company's revenues and pre-tax profits relating to its financial year ending 31 December 2015," Cenkos said.