The Japanese Toshiba Corp. said on Wednesday that it was receiving a proposal to acquire private equity firm CVC Capital Partners, in a deal that could be valued at more than $ 20 billion if completed.
Toshiba said it would seek further details on the offer and carefully consider the proposal.
Toshiba’s shares rose 18% in Tokyo on Wednesday, amounting to ¥ 4,530, equivalent to $ 41.26, the highest level since December 2016. This gives the company a market capitalization of nearly $ 19 billion. The Nikkei newspaper said CVC is offering a 30% premium, indicating that the proposal would value Toshiba at just over $ 20 billion.
CVC declined to comment.
The deal would, according to Dealogic, be one of the largest leveraged buyouts in history, and possibly the largest in Asia. In a leveraged buyout, a financial company like CVC uses borrowed money to buy a business, hoping to improve its operations and later sell at a profit.