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Grant Thornton’s US business has reportedly joined a shortlist of potential bidders for a stake in the firm’s UK arm, The Financial Times has reported.Grant Thornton’s private equity-owned US business joins Swedish global investment firm EQT in the next round of bidding, following last week’s reports that EQT had submitted a bid to Grant Thornton advisers ahead of the auction deadline.
The sales process is reportedly aiming to secure a valuation of up to £1.5bn for Grant Thornton UK, sources told the FT.
Alongside Grant Thornton US and EQT, London-based Permira has also been put through to the next round of bidding, according to reports.
Cinven, another previously cited bidder, declined to comment to the FT on whether it had made the shortlist.
According to the FT, Grant Thornton US recently sold a majority stake to a consortium led by private equity group New Mountain Capital, which is “keen” to back international expansion.
It has reportedly proposed the idea of acquiring Grant Thornton Ireland as well as the UK business, and has hired bankers of its own to consider the idea.
A spokesperson for Grant Thornton UK LLP previously told Accountancy Today: “As all businesses do, we continually evaluate the external business and economic landscape and explore various avenues that will drive growth for our firm.
“This enables us to make informed decisions about what’s best for our people, our clients and our firm. We are not actively engaged in any such transaction. We are committed to remaining as a multi-disciplinary firm. We will not be commenting further on this matter.”
Grant Thornton US, EQT and Permira all declined to comment.
