Johannesburg — OLD Mutual's offer for Skandia closes for final acceptance tomorrow, bringing to an end the group's six-month long bid for the Swedish savings group.

The terms of the cash and share offer remained unchanged, Old Mutual said on the JSE's Sens news service. The offer was worth 52,33 krone a share based on Old Mutual's closing share price of R20,50 yesterday.

Last month, Old Mutual said it had received acceptances from shareholders with 72,3% of Skandia's shares for the offer. But analysts said more shareholders would likely accept the offer closer to the closing date tomorrow.

Old Mutual needs 75% of Skandia to achieve £10m a year in tax savings in the UK. But it needs this only by 2008 and can buy shares on the open market.

Once it owns 90%, it can buy out minorities and delist the group, achieving a further £60m a year in other cost synergies.

Old Mutual said yesterday that due to the issue of the more than 1-billion new shares to help fund the deal, the Public Investment Corporation's holding in Old Mutual had shrunk from 7,13% in September last year to 5,83%. The Public Investment Corporation is Old Mutual's largest shareholder.

Skandia said yesterday that a number of changes had been made to the nominating committee, which recommends appointments to the board of directors.

Representatives of shareholders who had sold their shares to Old Mutual had resigned, while an Old Mutual representative and a representative of the First Swedish National Insurance Pension Fund had been appointed to the board.

Skandia said the committee would make recommendations ahead of an extraordinary meeting of the board on February 21.