Lab testing group Intertek to back £10.6bn takeover by Swedish firm EQT

FTSE 100 business ‘minded to recommend’ £60-a-share tilt from company owned by billionaire Wallenberg family The laboratory testing company Intertek has become the latest FTSE 100 business to agree to a takeover, backing a £10.6bn approach from a private equity firm owned by Sweden’s billionaire Wallenberg family. After rebuffing three previous approaches, Intertek’s board said it was “minded to recommend” the £60-a-share tilt from the Swedish buyout firm EQT to shareholders, if there was a firm offer. The deal is worth £10.6bn including debt, or £9.4bn without. The previous bids were pegged at £58, £54 and £51 a share. Intertek shares jumped almost 7% to £56.65 on Wednesday. Other FTSE 100 companies to have accepted multibillion-pound offers this year include the insurer Beazley and the fund manager Schroders. EQT was founded in 1994 as a spinout from Investor AB, the industrial holding company of the Wallenberg family. Its motto is “More than capital”, reflecting the Wallenbergs’ declared philosophy of responsible ownership. Their business empire has been estimated to be worth $40bn (£29.6bn), Bloomberg reported. Intertek, which tests and certifies pro