Asda co-owner Zuber Issa is looking to sell his stake in the supermarket to focus on EG Group’s petrol station business.
Issa has approached buyout specialists and retailers as he looks to offload his 22.5% stake in the grocer, The Telegraph reported.
Zuber bought Asda, alongside brother Mohsin and private equity firm TDR Capital, in a £6.8bn deal in 2021.
It is thought he wants to focus his attention on EG Group, the petrol station empire that helped build the billionaire brothers’ fortune.
The newspaper cites City sources who suggest that Zuber could use the share sale funds to buy brother Mohsin out of EG Group.
It comes amid rumours of a rift between the two brothers as Mohsin leaves his wife of 30 years and begins a new romantic relationship with Victoria Price, a former partner at accountancy giant EY, which was Asda’s auditor until it quit last July.
However, Price never had the supermarket as a client.
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Zuber would prefer another investor to join TDR and Mohsin for Asda’s next phase, which could include a bold bid for Boots, which the brothers were understood to be in the running to buy last year.
Any stake sale would have to be approved by Mohsin and TDR due to lock-in agreements. Zuber is said to be seeking more than £500m for his Asda stake.
He could explore selling the shareholding to TDR, although the private equity firm would likely offer a lower price than an outside investor.
Meanwhile, The Telegraph said that TDR is exploring bringing in a CEO with more grocery experience to replace Mohsin, who has been at the helm of Asda since Roger Burnley left the business in 2021.
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