Candover Investments Plc., the listed parent of the troubled private equity firm Candover, has received offers for takeover and has also started discussions with a few interested companies, reports Reuters. Candover has said that a number of parties have made approaches and the proposals cover a range of options, including offers for the company.
Though Candover has not disclosed the names of the interested parties, according to a report in UK's Telegraph, French private equity firm Eurazeo has expressed its interest in acquiring it. The report also suggests that Eurazeo may be willing to pay up to 450 pence a share for the acquisition. Various other investors such as secondary buy-out specialist Coller Capital and US group Blackstone could also be the potential bidders for Candover.
Some wealthy individuals from Europe may have also shown interest in acquiring Candover as they might want to merge it with or use it as in extension of the family offices that manage their wealth.
The value of Candover’s portfolio companies has dropped owing to excessive debt and low sales.
About 2 weeks back, Candover had said it was suspending all its investment activities for the next six months and would instead explore strategic options to stabilise its financial position. It had, however, clarified that this would not affect its plans of raising a new Asia fund. About a month back, Candover had said that its listed arm would either put its Asian and Eastern European operations on a self financing basis or would close them down.
Candover has already exited its investment in luxury yacht maker Ferretti, which it had bought for £1.5 billion in 2006. Its other portfolio companies include gaming group Gala and oil and gas-services provider Expro. Candover Investments' net asset value was 1,026 pence as of Dec. 31, 2008, and the company has not made any new investments since then.