Mark Byrne’s attempt to buy a 25 percent stake in Bermuda-based Omega Insurance Holdings was hanging in the balance last night.Early yesterday, the offer of Mr Byrne’s investment vehicle Haverford Bermuda Ltd to acquire a quarter of the insurer’s shares expired with no announcement either from Omega or from Haverford.The Royal Gazette understands that talks were continuing between the parties yesterday but nothing had been finalised by press time.Haverford’s original offer, revealed in September, was set at between 70p and 83p per share of the London-listed Omega. A ‘Dutch auction’ was to take place in which shareholders willing to tender some stock would submit the minimum price they could accept. By this mechanism the final price to reach the 25 percent stake would be set.Yesterday Sky News was reporting that Haverford had tabled a new 74p per share, fixed-price offer. This came the day after Omega had stated that Haverford had informed the company that it was considering making a fixed-price offer, or one at a lower range.In its nine-month interim statement last week, Omega revealed that catastrophe losses this year will be $6 million greater than it had previously estimated.If Mr Byrne, the co-founder of Flagstone Re, is successful in acquiring the one quarter stake, he will become Omega’s new chairman.