Bid talk sees Misys value hit £1.5bn

The disclosure from Misys, which has offices in Worcester and London and employs 4,000 people worldwide, ends weeks of speculation that the group was a bid target.

Shares in the group jumped to a new 10-year high of 420p, valuing the group at more than £1.4bn.

Misys gave no indication over who the bidder might be, but in recent weeks market talk has mentioned US firms Sungard and FIS Global as possible bid- ders.

The company has more than 1,200 bank customers and is also a major supplier of back office and trading systems to fund managers and traders.

It has seen its value rise sharply over the past three years following the sale of its majority holding in the AllScripts US healthcare business last year, which resulted in a cash return of nearly £700m to Misys shareholders.

Misys shares have risen from 310p in March as takeover talk has persisted.

Analysts suggested a bid for the firm seemed inevitable given the group’s strong market positions in software banking and treasury and capital markets and improved financial position following the recent restructuring carried out by chief executive Mike Lawrie, which included the Allscripts disposal.

Milan Radia, a broker at Jeffries, said Misys would appeal to a number of potential bidders in the United States or to Indian firms, such as Tata Consultancy or Infosys, looking to build an international presence.