Philip Gibbs, one of the most influential fund managers in the City of London, said yesterday that he sold out of the Prudential when it announced the acquisition of Asian insurer AIA - a deal he deemed "very, very expensive".

Gibbs, who manages Jupiter Asset Management's £1.2bn (€1.4bn) Financial Opportunities fund, explained his stance in a conference call to investors yesterday. He said the deal is dilutive for shareholders, and takes no account of the difficult long-term outlook for financials, according to a report in Investment Week. A Jupiter spokeswoman confirmed that Gibbs sold out of the Prudential when the deal was announced.