Old Mutual, bidding £3.6bn (€5.2bn) for Swedish rival Skandia, last night declared its offer wholly unconditional after receiving 72.3% acceptances. Skandia immediately set a date for an extraordinary general meeting, in which its chief executive is expected to step down.

A source close to London-listed Old Mutual said the move to elect a board supportive of the bid would be "a logical outcome." Analysts at Nordea said they expect the current chief executive Hans-Erik Andersson, who is opposed to the offer, to go.