You are viewing your 1 free article this month. Login to read more articles.
Bidders for Waterstone's have a reported two weeks to express a formal interest in the chain, as parent HMV Group said it was in "advanced discussions" over a sale.
The Mail on Sunday reports investment bank Nomura has set the deadline for bidders including turnaround specialists Valco, owned by Hilco, GA Europe and Sun Capital. Russian billionaire Alexander Mamut, who has teamed up wth the chain's founder Tim Waterstone, reportedly tabled a £43m bid over the weekend.
Retail analyst Nick Bubb at Arden Partners described the Mamut offer as a "pretty poor price" for the chain. He said he believed HMV Group would make a small loss in its next financial year, "so selling Waterstone's is not the final answer".
At time of writing, HMV Group's share price was 10.75p, up from 10.12p when the markets opened on Friday.