Aviva chiefs under fire after rejecting £5bn bid

Aviva bosses looked to be under growing pressure from shareholders today after the firm’s rejection of a £5bn bid for its general insurance arm.

The surprise approach from RSA was made in a letter from chairman John Napier but was rebuffed by Aviva several weeks ago without it consulting shareholders or notifying the market of the interest. Aviva shares rose by as much as 5% on Friday after details of RSA’s interest emerged in the media.