THE owners of Glasgow’s biggest bus operator has knocked back an “opportunistic” takeover bid from a big American finance firm.
FirstGroup’s board rejected the bid by Apollo Management a US private equity company.
The transport group said the offer undervalued the business and it was unanimously rejected.
A FIRST Statement said: "The board of FirstGroup has considered the proposal in detail and believes that it fundamentally undervalues the company and is opportunistic in nature.
"Accordingly, the board of FirstGroup has unanimously rejected the proposal."
The details of the offer were not disclosed by First.
As well as running buses in Glasgow and other Scottish and UK cities First Group has bus and rail interests in the USA including the famous Greyhound Bus services.
The issue may not be over as under UK trading rules Apollo has until May 9 to make a formal offer to take over the company.
The international firm has its headquarters in Aberdeen and employs around 100,000 staff worldwide.
The news of the bid revealed by the FTSE 250 Transport Group saw First Group shares increase by more than 9%.
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