Southern broking firm Forsyth Barr has rejected speculation it is in discussions with listed Australian-owned Macquarie Group over a sale deal, yesterday telling staff no negotiations were under way.
Forsyth Barr staff in Dunedin were aware of speculation that the Macquarie Group, with a market capitalisation $A15.8 billion, were rumoured to be in talks with Forsyth Barr, but Forsyth Barr managing director Neil Paviour-Smith rejected the claims when contacted yesterday.
"We are not doing a deal and I have told staff.
There are rumours, which are annoying," Mr Paviour-Smith said.
At 74 years old, Forsyth Barr is the country's largest private client sharebrokerage, with 16 offices and more than $4 billion under management.
Forsyth Barr staff were understood to have been told in an email: "There's no deal or talks on the table with Macquarie, or any other party", one source said.
Mr Paviour-Smith suggested Macquarie was more likely to be more interested in a competitor, who in turn was more likely to be interested in striking a deal with Deutsche Bank.
