CVC joins JC Flowers in potential bid for UK bank Aldermore, sources say

By Amy-Jo Crowley and Lawrence White

LONDON, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Private equity group CVC CVC.AS has joined forces with JC Flowers on a bid for FirstRand's UK bank arm Aldermore, two people familiar with the matter said.

The South African lender said in April it planned to exit from its small specialist British bank blaming a costly UK motor finance redress scheme, as ‌it raised provisions for mis-sold motor loans to £750 million ($1.01 billion).

• Aldermore’s owner FirstRand FSRJ.J has asked prospective buyers to submit non-binding offers on Tuesday, two of the people said.

• FirstRand, Aldermore and CVC declined to comment. JC Flowers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

• British bank NatWest NWG.L, Centerbridge and Warburg Pincus are also potential bidders for the unit that was first acquired by FirstRand in 2017, one of the people said. Natwest, Warburg Pincus and Centerbridge declined to comment.

• The discussions further show how Britain's specialist and mid-sized banks, which have struggled in recent years trying to compete with larger incumbents, are now undergoing a wave of consolidation. Examples include Nationwide's £2.9 billion purchase of Virgin Money in 2024 and Santander's takeover of TSB in 2025.

• FirstRand said last week that it expected non-binding offers for the unit to be submitted by the end of this month.

• Analysts at RBC have previously estimated a value for Aldermore at £1.35 billion.

• Other potential bidders were expected to include the UK's Metro Bank and Lloyds, Sky News previously reported.

($1 = 0.7417 pounds)