Millions will be given to policy holders by Old Mutual after a property deal went wrong, the JSE-listed life assurance company said on Tuesday.

In a statement, Crispin Sonn, director marketing and corporate affairs, Old Mutual SA said the decision was taken following an investigation into a property transaction involving Nedbank Gardens in Rosebank.

Old Mutual Investment Group Property Investments (OMIGPI) sold the building for R98-million, even though it had received a higher offer from an entity it saw as a competitor, Sonn said.

The building effectively belonged to policyholders.

Sonn said OMIGPI was currently busy with a major development in Rosebank which included the Zone Phase II.

It sold the property to a lower bidder to maximize the overall value of its total investment in the Rosebank area, which was estimated at approximately R850-million.

"To accept a bid that is not the highest, if it means another bidder's development will have less of a negative impact on the existing property, is not uncommon in property transactions," Sonn said.

However, because a majority shareholding in Nedbank Gardens was later sold on to the owner of the adjacent mall, Old Mutual concluded that the sale process had not achieved its strategic objective.

Old Mutual then requested OMIGPI to review the transaction in detail to determine if any remedial action should be taken.

Sonn said OMIGPI accordingly briefed PricewaterhouseCoopers, as an independent audit firm, to conduct an in-depth review of this and other transactions dating back to 2007, and all relevant investment processes and controls.

"The review has now been concluded.

"It has found that no member of OMIGPI's staff was involved in a deliberate attempt to influence the investment decision for inappropriate purposes, or financial reward," Sonn noted.

Nevertheless, he pointed out that control breakdowns had occurred in the execution of the Rosebank transaction.

He said Old Mutual and OMIGPI had accepted all the review findings, and taken measures with respect to the control breakdowns, and accountability, in respect of the Nedbank Gardens transaction and going forward.

"To ensure that Old Mutual's customers should suffer no prejudice in respect of this transaction, OMIGPI will pass a credit to policyholder funds invested in Nedbank Gardens for an amount that will be quantified by PricewaterhouseCoopers," Sonn said.

In addition, appropriate disciplinary steps had been taken where necessary, he added.