Carlyle and Kingston in buy-out talks
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Telco could sell for 400 million.
11 November 2005 US private equity company The Carlyle Group is on the verge of acquiring Hull-based telecoms provider Kingston Communications in a deal potentially worth £400 million.
Kingston executives have issued a statement confirming that talks with interested parties have been held, but so said no agreement had been reached and refused to identify the bidder: "Discussions are conceptual in nature and there can be no certainty that they will lead to any definitive agreement."
But city analysts believe that the Carlyle Group is interested and has offered up to 85p per share - valuing the company at over £400 million.
One sticking point could be the Kingston's business-to-business unit Affiniti. The group produces the lion's share of Kingston's revenues, but lacks a long-term track record necessary to convince financial investors of its value.
In 1999, when Kingston was floated on the stock exchange, half of Hull households - where it has a monopoly - bought shares.
By 2000 it was listed on the FTSE 100 with a valuation of £5 billion. However those heady days have long gone.
A spokesman for Kingston confirmed: "The approach contains a number of conditions and pre-conditions which are being considered by the board."
