Advantage Partners to buy out Tokyo Star Bank for $2.2 billion

Mumbai: Advantage Partners LLC, Japan's largest buyout fund, has agreed to acquire US investment fund Lone Star Funds' 68 per cent stake in Tokyo Star Bank Ltd, for around 252 billion yen ($2.2 billion).

Advantage, in a statement published on its website, offered to pay Dallas-based Lone Star 360,000 yen a share for its Tokyo Star Bank stake.

Advantage also made an open offer to buy the remainder of the bank's traded stock at the same price.

Lone Star held two auctions before settling on Advantage Partners as a preferred buyer early this year, but an agreement has been held up for months as the Japanese firm finalised backing.

Also, Tokyo Star's shares slumped along with those of other financial institutions, dropping by a third between May and November.

Four funds affiliated with Advantage Partners are offering 360,000 yen per share or an 8.5 per cent premium to Tokyo Star's historical three-month average closing price and a 2.3 per cent premium to its Friday's closing price.