BCE Inc., the parent of Canada's largest telecommunications company, confirmed Wednesday that it is in discussions to sell the company to U.S. private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP and a group of Canadian investors, according to AP. Cerberus Capital recently struck a deal to acquire Chrysler Corp. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board has already declared it is interested in buying BCE, and Ontario Teachers Pension Plan has also signaled it may lead a bid. Analysts say offers could top $32 billion Canadian (US$29.6 billion) in what would be the country's biggest buyout ever. «Members of the (bidding) group have signed non-disclosure and standstill agreements with BCE on a non-exclusive basis,» Montreal-based BCE said in a press release confirming talks. The company had previously announced its intention to review all strategic alternatives, including a possible sale, with a decision by the end of the third quarter. Last week, Canada's Globe and Mail newspaper reported that Cerberus was planning to make a bid. The sale of the company has been rumored since late March. BCE chief executive Michael Sabia has resisted suggestions of a takeover in the past, in the belief that his slimming and focusing of BCE, including an end to its conglomerate structure and a planned return to the Bell Canada name, would end a long period of flat stock-market performance.
