Permira floored in store bid battle

VENTURE capital firm Permira has conceded defeat in the battle for Debenhams, after being trumped last night by a £1.7bn knockout bid from rival consortium CVC Capital Partners/Texas Pacific.

CVC, which already had the highest bid, topped its own terms with a 470p-a-share offer, winning board approval.

Permira said today it would not increase its terms, but pointed out that shareholders have done well out of the auction, gaining an extra £165m through the process.

In a brief statement, Laragrove - the bid vehicle of Permira - said it ?believes that Debenhams has a superb management team and wishes them well in their future'.

Defeat will be cushioned by an agreed ?break-fee‘ of £8.5m, which will be paid to Permira once the successful bid goes through.

It is bad news for Debenhams chief executive Belinda Earl and finance director Matthew Roberts. The successful bidders already have a retail team, headed by John Lovering. Earl and Roberts are expected to be out of a job, but the former will collect around £3m in share options and Roberts some £2m.