Old Mutual received a vote of confidence from Cevian Capital, the Swedish activist investor, which said it supported the strategy of the life and pensions group’s management as it revealed it held a 4.1 per cent stake.

Shares in the London-listed South African financial services company rose by more than 7 per cent, outstripping the 2 per cent rise in the FTSE 100, after the news that people close to Old Mutual said was viewed positively by its management.