BNET Daily Dispatch: Alltel, IBM, EMI, and China - Blackstone
- The largest buyout deal in telecommunications history was agreed upon last night when Alltel accepted a $27.5 acquisition offer from a consortium of private equity firms, including the Texas Pacific Group and Goldman Sachs' private equity branch. Alltel chief executive Scott Ford said the buyout "delivers substantial and certain value to our shareholders while providing the company with long-term partners who share our commitment to our customers, employees and the communities we serve."
- IBM launched a new breed of microprocessors today, called Power 6, which are twice as fast as the previous generation and consume no more energy. IBM is confident the chips will help ease the energy crisis that threatens to disable data centers worldwide.
- EMI, the British music company, today agreed to a $4.7 billion buyout offer from Terra Firma Capital Partners. An anonymous source familiar with the deal said that Terra Firma is confident in the "digital growth opportunity in the music market, in general, and so the expectation is that the business will be held together." Guy Hands, Terra Firma's chief executive said the priority was to develop EMI's digital and online strategy.
- Blackstone today revealed details of its landmark IPO expected within the next few months, and announced that the Chinese government will take a 9.9 percent stake in the company for $3 billion. The investment will mark the first time Beijing has placed any portion of its foreign exchange reserves outside U.S. Treasury bonds. Stephen Schwarzman, Blackstone's chief executive, calls it a "historic event that changes the paradigm in global capital flows."