Tesco Picks MBK As Preferred Bidder For South Korea Operation
September 02 2015 - 4:00AM
Dow Jones News
Retailer Tesco PLC has picked Asian private-equity firm MBK
Partners LP as the preferred bidder to buy its South Korea retail
operations—its largest outside the U. K.— in a deal that could be
worth between $6 billion and $7 billion, according to a person
familiar with the situation.
A sale by Tesco, if completed, would jettison a big chunk of
Tesco's global operations after a series of blunders at the U.K.
retail chain including an accounting scandal, massive write-downs,
and upheaval in its management ranks. Tesco is counting on the
proceeds from the sale, which could include a dividend being paid
out from the South Korean business, to help fund its turnaround
effort.
The deal will be among the largest transactions in Asia this
year and a landmark private equity deal in South Korea. MBK
Partners, which manages around $8.2 billion in assets, was founded
in 2005 by a group of former Carlyle Group LP executives.
MBK has been competing for the Tesco business in South Korea,
known as Homeplus, with a joint bid from KKR & Co. and Affinity
Equity Partners, according to people familiar with the situation.
MBK had initially teamed up with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in its
bid, but Goldman later withdrew from the bidding consortium,
according to one person familiar with the situation.
Write to Rick Carew at rick.carew@wsj.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 02, 2015 03:45 ET (07:45 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2015 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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