Secret £500m bid launched for property firm

A property firm with widespread interests in Manchester has received a secret takeover bid of £500m, according to widespread reports.

Helical, which has offices in Manchester and London, has received the bid from an American private equity group.

The bid from the unnamed firm values the company at below the £567 million total worth of its assets.

If the sale went ahead it would offer a lucrative exit for Mike Slade, one of the most colourful characters in the property market.

The yacht loving businessman has a 10% stake in the firm which he ran for 30 years as chief executive.

Mr Slade is due to step down as chairman of the firm next month and would walk away with around £50m.

Helical has suffered from Brexit uncertainty in recent years which has putting pressure on its share price.

Shares in the listed firm have fallen by 7.6 per cent overall in the past five years.

Reports of the bid first emerged in the Sunday Times.