Tokyo Mitsubishi is in the frame for a stake in Lehman as suitors drop out
The saga over bids for a stake in Lehman Brothers assets entered a new chapter yesterday, as another potential suitor entered the fray and several parties rumoured to be interested dropped out.
Reports from Japan suggested that the country’s banking powerhouse, Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ, was monitoring the situation closely, with a view to making a bid for a substantial stake in Lehman.
The bank has more than enough funding for a large-scale acquisition but it is likely to wait until Lehman announces third quarter results later this month before making its move.
Meanwhile, interest from Korea Development Bank (KDB) cooled after a number of potential co-investors said they were not interested in forming a consortium to finance a bid. Korean banks including Woori Finance Holdings and Shinhan Financial Group all said they were not interested in joining KDB in a deal for 25 per cent of the company, for around $6bn. And reports that HSBC was preparing a bid for Lehman look to have been wide of the mark after sources within the bank pointed to a strategy statement from chairman Stephen Green saying that Europe’s largest bank “won’t acquire a big bank in the US”.
The waning of activity regarding approaches for Lehman saw its share price dip slightly, falling 0.74 per cent to $16.01.