Brian Myerson and friends are hit with takeover ban

Brian Myerson, the investor who hit the headlines last year due to his unusual love life, was today banned from getting involved in takeovers for the next three years.

The ruling by the Takeover Panel against Myerson and colleagues Daniel Posen and Brian Padgett is the first so-called "cold shoulder" issued by the watchdog for 18 years.

The three had earlier appealed against the decision and today vented their fury. In a statement, Myerson said "the matters raised by the Takeover Panel are wholly wrong and misguided".

The Panel concluded that the three men acted in concert when acquiring 6.7 million shares in the Principle Capital Investment Trust on March 27 2009.

They then engaged in a cover-up to conceal their plans, the watchdog claims.

"In breach of their obligations to assist the panel," the men attempted to "conceal from the executive the circumstances relating to the acquisition of these shares, to present a false picture of what happened," the panel said in the statement.

Myerson last year tried to cut his former wife's £11 million divorce settlement on the grounds that the credit crunch had damaged his wealth.

The court disagreed. During proceedings it emerged that he had led a double life for
10 years, keeping a second family just around the corner from his main home. His wife had not been aware of the arrangement, but later divorced him on the grounds of adultery.

The Takeover Panel operates a code of conduct designed to protect the interests of shareholders.
The ruling today says the panel should "publish a formal statement ...indicating that Mr Myerson, Mr Padgett and Mr Posen are persons who ... are not likely to comply with the Code."