CVC in exclusive talks to buy control of Philippine PLDT unit: source
PLDT, Manila's second-most valuable listed company, had put an 80 percent stake in SPi Global on the block last year as it looks to shed non-core businesses.
The auction attracted interest from global buyout firms including Bain Capital and Carlyle Group as well as CVC, Thomson Reuters publication Basis Point reported on Wednesday.
The deal underlines rising interest in the Philippines as an investment destination, with some of the world's biggest private equity firms beefing up their capabilities in Southeast Asia's booming economies.
The Philippines' economy grew an annualised 7.1 percent in the third quarter, the second-fastest pace in Asia after China. The rapid pace makes it likely that growth for all of 2012 will surpass the Philippine government's 5 to 6 percent target. The benchmark Philippine stock index surged by a third last year and was one of Asia's best performing markets.
Asia is enjoying a fundraising boom as global equity firms are tempted by its fast- growing economies and potential for further expansion, and that is drawing some of the world's biggest private equity firms to bid on auctions in markets where buyout deals have previously been thin on the ground.
PLDT said in a Philippine Stock Exchange filing last month that it was finalising a deal without
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