Lloyd's managing agency Omega Underwriting Holdings has approached Hardy Underwriting...

Lloyd's managing agency Omega Underwriting Holdings has approached Hardy Underwriting Group about a possible merger.

Omega, which operates syndicate 958, has made two recent offers for Hardy, which operates syndicate 382 at Lloyd's, Hardy said in a statement.

Hardy said it had rejected both proposals because they "were not in the best interests of (Hardy's) shareholders."

However, both companies said in separate statements that they would enter into further merger talks.

Omega's syndicate 958 has capacity of £225m at Lloyd's for 2005, while Hardy's syndicate 382 had capacity of £100m.

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