The Gulf-based backers behind the Barclay family is planning a sale of Very Group as it looks to unwind £1.2bn of refinancing of the family’s debts.
United Arab Emirates vice president Sheikh Mansour and American private equity firm RedBird Capital had hoped to buy the Telegraph in an debt for equity swap but this was effectively blocked by the UK Government.
Now, according to The Times, attention has switched to selling off Very, while the auction process for the newspaper and magazine group is restarted.
Selling both groups separately is seen as more likely to raise more money, as ‘different bidders will offer best value for the individual parts’.
Very has long been a prized possession of the family’s business operations but its future has been dogged by speculation about the group’s finances. German insurer Allianz withdrew the retailer’s credit insurer for suppliers last year and since then, the retailer has accepted £125m of debt funding from private equity firm Carlyle and IMI, the sheikh’s investment firm. IMI had already secured £600m against Very with its refinancing of the Barclays’ debts to Lloyds.
