The Los Angeles City Council voted 10-0...
The Los Angeles City Council voted 10-0 to approve a resolution condemning the $4.35-billion hostile takeover bid by Batus Inc. for Farmers Group, a Los Angeles-based insurance holding company. The resolution cited investments in South Africa by London-based BAT Industries, the giant tobacco and retailing parent of Batus, in calling on state Insurance Commissioner Roxani M. Gillespie to disallow the acquisition. A Batus spokesman said the City Council was acting on “one-sided information” from Farmers and had never contacted Batus for comment. Meanwhile, Farmers said it would release the final count of a non-binding resolution asking its board to reconsider negotiating a friendly merger with Batus on June 10.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
