/ 12 February 1999

MARKET COOL ON LIBLIFE DEAL

SHARES in the Liberty Life group tumbled for the second consecutive day on Thursday after initial enthusiasm on closer ties with Standard Bank cooled. Standard Bank Investment Corporation (Stanbic) announced a R5,6-billion tie-up with assurance giant Liberty Life earlier this week, taking the first step towards forging a new financial services giant. “There was an initial over-reaction from the market on speculation of a deal and shares ran away. The reality is now setting in that it is going to be a long process,” a dealer said.