BA moves to avoid conflicts of interest at Iberia |
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Sun, 01 Apr 2007 15:43
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LONDON (AFX) - British Airways is likely to keep its two Iberia board nominees away from future board meetings of the Spanish airline following last week's takeover approach from Texas Pacific Group, a company spokesman said.BA wants to avoid any potential conflicts of interest arising from its stake in Iberia, the spokesman said.He confirmed to AFX News weekend reports that the two nominees did not attend Iberia's Friday's board meeting, when the Texas Pacific approach was discussed.However, he declined to comment on a report in the Independent on Sunday, which claimed BA and the private equity group are discussing a joint 3.4 bln eur bid for the Spanish company.Last week, Texas Pacific said it was considering a takeover offer of 3.60 eur per share for Iberia.And late Friday, in a statement to the London Stock Exchange, BA announced it has hired investment bank UBS to consider options for its 10 pct stake in Iberia, which includes a sale.The appointment of UBS and the move to avoid conflicts of interest is likely to heighten speculation that BA is considering joining a consortium to buy the airline, or pursuing a merger.The Independent report claimed that TPG would not be able to complete the deal without the blessing of BA, which as well as the 10 pct stake has the first right to buy another 30 pct.TPG is holding 'round the clock talks' this weekend with BA, to secure support for any offer, given that the airline is keen to retain an interest in Iberia, the paper said.amy.brown@thomson.comab/wjCOPYRIGHTCopyright AFX News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.The copying, republication or redistribution of AFX News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of AFX News.AFX News and AFX Financial News Logo are registered trademarks of AFX News Limited
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Iberia informs board of bid interest from four major groups - report 