Deutsche Bank is strengthening its financial markets business in the UK and acquiring the London stockbroker Numis.

The Frankfurt-based bank is offering 410 million pounds (464 million euros) for Numis, as both institutions announced on Friday. This is the largest acquisition for Deutsche Bank in more than a decade.

At 350 pence per share - including two interim dividends - the offer is 72 percent higher than Numis' closing price on Thursday. The largest Numis shareholder has committed to accept Deutsche Bank's offer. According to Refinitiv data, the Danish entrepreneur Anders Holch Povlsen - known as the owner of the fashion company Bestseller - holds 22.8 percent of the shares. Numis shares were up around 67 percent around midday. Deutsche Bank shares were little changed. The acquisition was a surprise that needed a lot of explanation, commented analysts at JP Morgan.

"The merger will allow us to take advantage of greater earnings opportunities within our combined client base and deepen our exposure to UK companies," said Fabrizio Campelli, head of Deutsche Bank's corporate and investment bank. The London-based investment house has a strong network of UK clients and, according to Deutsche Bank, covers almost 20 percent of the companies in the FTSE 350 index. The investment banking market in the UK is by far the largest in Europe.

Numis has 344 employees and acts as a broker, among other things, and also offers advice on company acquisitions and share analyses. In the financial year ending September 2022, the company reported a turnover of £144.2 million and a pre-tax profit of £20.9 million. Numis is expected to have generated sales of around 64 million pounds in the half-year ended March.

(Report by Tom Sims, Alexander Hübner and Myria Mildenberger, edited by Ralf Banser. If you have any queries, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and the economy) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).)