By Daniel Hunter
An apparent fake takeover bid for Avon caused its shares to be repeatedly suspended in New York on Thursday.
The beauty products firm initially saw shares surge 20% after reports suggested that PTG Capital Partners had bid $8bn (£5.1bn), more than three times its market value.
But Avon said in a statement that it had not received any offer.
Many analysts have even questioned whether "PTG Capital Partners" even exists, following an error-strewn filing to the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC).
There is a company called "TPG Capital" and the SEC filing even sees PTG refer to itself as TPG. It also appears to have used information see on TPG's website.
Avon's shares were suspended three times due to the volatile action taking place. But shares were up 6% once the dust had settled.
