Very Group owners to appoint banks ahead of potential £2.5bn sale
The investment banks, whose appointments could be confirmed within days, will kickstart a full or partial auction of Very Group
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The owners of the Very Group, the Barclay family, have reportedly appointed banks as they eye a £2.5bn sale of the group, according to reports from Sky News.
The board, now chaired by former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi, is lining up Barclays, JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley to handle a strategic review.
The investment banks, whose appointments could be confirmed within days, will kickstart a full or partial auction of Very Group.
Insiders told Sky that a sale was more likely, with bidders expected to be courted on the basis of Very’s technology-driven financial services arm.
Some of those sources expect Carlyle to ultimately emerge in control of the business, having agreed earlier this year to extend the maturity date for a tranche of the online shopping group’s debt.
A spokesperson for The Very Group said: “Following recent media speculation, we reiterate that during 2025 we will put in place the right mix of debt and equity for the capital structure to drive growth in years to come. Nothing has changed and we expect to address this during 2025.”
This comes after the Barclay family have lost a number of their assets including The Spectator.
It is also expected that The New York Sun will purchase The Daily Telegraph from the Barclays family for around £550m.
In February, Yodel Group, their parcel delivery business, narrowly averted insolvency when it was sold to a consortium backed by executives at Shift, a rival.
