TOKYO (Reuters) – U.S. buyout fund Bain Capital has made a binding offer to buy FujiSoft for 9,450 yen per share in a deal that values the Japanese software developer at $4 billion and outperforms rival KKR by about 7 percent.
Bain said in a statement on Friday that it intends to launch the offering towards the end of October, provided it receives FujiSoft’s support.
Bain and KKR have been engaged in a rare bid to take over Fuji Soft, which has been at loggerheads with some of its major shareholders.
KKR last month moved the start date of the tender offer forward by about a week at a fixed price of 8,800 yen, and said it would conduct the tender offer in two stages.
FujiSoft has since said that its board of directors decided to recommend to shareholders that they tender shares in KKR’s first tender offer.
FujiSoft shares closed at 9,000 yen on Friday.
($1 = 149.1200 yen)