US private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) has been given more time to put forward a takeover offer from UK supermarket chain Morrisons.
The deadline for CD&R to either announce a firm intention to make an offer or walk away has been pushed pack by two weeks until 20 August by the Takeover Panel.
Morrisons rejected a £5.5b bid from CD&R in June, arguing that it “significantly” undervalued the business and its prospects.
CD&R made the request for more time on Friday, as Morrisons said it had agreed to an increased £6.7bn takeover offer from a consortium led by SoftBank-backed Fortress.
Fortress lifted its offer to 272p a share form 254p a share. Under the terms of the deal, Morrisons shareholders would receive 270p a share in cash plus a special dividend of 2p.
The Fortress consortium includes the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and an investment company controlled by Koch Industries.
