Canada shares to yield windfall

A FEW lucky Irish shareholders in Canada Life are in line for huge one-off pay-outs of up to €672,720 each, if the bid

Average payments will be much lower at just under €7,000, but it was reported yesterday that a handful of people will cash in to the tune of several hundred thousand euros.

Some 25,000 Irish people or institutions hold Canada Life shares out of a total of 190,000 shareholders. They will receive details this week of the $4.78 billion offer for the company by US firm Great West. The Canada Life board had previously rejected as inadequate a hostile bid by Toronto-based Manulife, but gave its approval to the Great West deal.