By Anton Bridge
In an interesting twist within the ongoing bidding war for the Japanese IT firm Fuji Soft, U.S.-based private equity player KKR has decided to up its ante. On Tuesday, KKR announced they would increase their offer by over 4%, surpassing a competing bid from Bain Capital.
This latest development in the saga that kicked off last August saw KKR and Bain fiercely vying for Fuji Soft, with tender offers reaching nearly $2 billion. KKR has nudged their bid up to 9,850 yen for each share, edging past Bain’s previous proposal of 9,600 yen.
As things stand, KKR holds 33.97% of Fuji Soft, having secured a foothold in the firm during the first segment of a two-part strategy. This was achieved in part by convincing activist investors 3D Investment Partners and Farallon Capital to pledge their shares to KKR. Nonetheless, a majority stake eludes KKR since Bain’s offer stands taller and Fuji Soft’s market price often overshoots KKR’s bid.
KKR has been extending its tender offer time and again, with the current extension set to conclude this Friday. Meanwhile, Fuji Soft’s shares climbed by nearly 1.79% in early afternoon trading, reaching 9,975 yen—outpacing both proposals on the table.
Interesting to note is Bain’s strategy; backed by the company’s founding family, they have yet to officially pitch their tender offer. Bain plans to make their move only if KKR’s attempt either collapses or is retracted.
Efforts to get Bain’s comments on KKR’s recent hike proved unsuccessful, and Fuji Soft also chose not to weigh in.
Rewinding back to last August, KKR came out of the gate with an initial bid of 8,800 yen per share for Fuji Soft. Bain entered the fray a month later with a 9,450 yen offer, triggering KKR to slightly edge them out with an offer of 9,451 yen—holding firm even as Bain upped theirs to 9,600 yen.
As of the latest exchange rates, one dollar equals 155.2800 yen.
This report includes additional contributions from Kantaro Komiya and Kane Wu, with editorial input by Chang-Ran Kim and Kate Mayberry.
