Crowe Horwath considers fresh takeover bid

Accounting firm Crowe Horwath has entered into exclusive takeover talks with wealth management group Financial Index Wealth Accountants and private equity firm KKR Asset Management, snubbing rival bidder Anchorage Capital Partners.

Crowe Horwath today said it had agreed to provide Findex with an exclusivity period during which the firm could undertake due diligence in regards to the deal and negotiate the terms of a potential takeover.

During the exclusivity deal, which expires at the end of next month, Crowe Horwath is not permitted to seek out or encourage rival bids or make any non-public information available to a third party.

The company today said it was "no longer in discussions" with Anchorage Capital Partners, which last month made what the company described as a "highly conditional" takeover proposal.

However it gave no assurance that a transaction would result from the exclusive negotiations with Findex and KKR Asset Management, which is the local division of US private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts.

Crowe Horwath, formerly known as WHK Horwath, is Western Australia's eighth biggest accounting firm, with 95 WA accountants, according to Business News IQ data.

The company has 110 employees in WA, with 22 offices interstate.

Its shares jumped 6 cents, or 14.3 per cent, to 48 cents at the close of trade.