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JUNE 2008 W3 ALERT Bain Bursts to the Forefront of Bidders for D&MAuction End Appears to be Nearing<Reuters-TOKYO><June 18, 2008>Reuters is reporting that a consortium led by Bain Capital has secured bank financing of more than ¥70 billion (just under $650 million) in their bid to purchase the 49% stake of D&M Holdings Inc. currently held by RHJ International SA.
RHJI has been conducting an auction of its D&M stake for several months now and indications from “sources familiar with the matter” are that the Bain group has moved to the forefront into direct competition with Advantage Partners in the contest.
 Bain Capital is making their bid in conjunction with audio manufacturer Kenwood Corp in a consortium that joined the bidding in the second round. Kenwood is currently in the process of combining their operations with Victor Company of Japan Ltd (JVC) in a process that is expected to be completed by this fall.
Previous reports on the auction had indicated that there were a total of four groups competing for the RHJI shares. However, the new reports are indicating that U.S. retailer Best Buy and Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity have withdrawn from the competition.
The second largest shareholder of D&M is Philips and it is widely expected that Philips will liquidate its 12% stake once a winning bidder has been determined.
Bain has put together a ¥70 billion financing package with a group of banks including Aozora Bank Ltd, Mizuho Corporate Bank, and Shinsei Bank Ltd.
Sources have indicated that the winning bid will be announced shortly. RELATED STORIES: |
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