Macquarie Bank and venture capital firm Texas Pacific are at the head of a consortium of private equity houses that have approached Australia's flagship airline Qantas about a potential bid.
Qantas announced to the Australian Stock Exchange yesterday that it was investigating the bid, which it said was "confidential and incomplete."
"Qantas . . . has undertaken over a period of years discussions with a range of individuals and companies, including airlines, on possible partnerships, joint ventures and acquisitions," the airline said in a statement.
Shares in Qantas leapt 15 per cent to $5 on the back of the potential bid.
Any consortium looking to buy Qantas, however, will face a 49 per cent cap on foreign ownership and a 25 per cent cap on individual stakes.
This latest private equity bid is one of a string of deals that have been completed or under discussion this year.
Texas Pacific and its parent company Newbridge Capital were part of the consortium that paid $1.4 billion for department store Myer earlier this year.
Last month US-based Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) and CVC Asia Pacific bid $18.2 billion for retailer Coles Myer and this week broadcaster Seven Network announced it was selling its television and magazine assets into a $4 billion media joint venture with KKR.
Private equity deals worth almost $13 billion have been signed this year to date in Australia, according to global data provider Dealogic, eclipsing last year's total of $1.7 billion.
