// Morrisons has beat Asda in the battle to buy collapsed convenience store operator McColl’s
// The pair submitted final bids on Sunday
Morrisons is to snap up McColl’s after winning a battle against Asda owner EG Group to gain control of the convenience chain.
The Bradford-based grocer emerged victorious with a bid that will preserve all 1,100 McColl’s stores and 16,000 staff, according to Sky News.
An improved offer that will see McColl’s lenders repaid immediately in full, satisfying their principal demand, was also among the decisive factors in Morrisons’ successful bid
READ MORE: Morrisons and EG Group in last-minute battle to buy McColl’s
An announcement is expected to be made by PwC, which his been appointed as adminstrators to McColl’s later on Monday, and will be structured as a pre-pack deal.
McColl’s lenders rejected a solvent rescue offer from Morrisons on Friday that would have involved them rolling over more than £100 million of debt into the supermarket chain, but being repaid in full as the loans expired.
The lenders, which include Barclays, HSBC and state-backed NatWest Group, were seeking immediate repayment of their loans, initially leading them to favour EG Group
McColl’s is an important partner of Morrisons, operating hundreds of smaller shops under the Morrisons Daily brand.
The company, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange but saw its shares suspended on Friday, employs roughly 6,000 people on a full-time equivalent basis.
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