The sandwich chain Subway, which is up for sale, is to be made palatable to reluctant financial investors with a financing package worth billions. As several people familiar with the bidding process told the Reuters news agency, the bank JPMorgan, commissioned by the US owner families with the sale, wants to achieve the desired price of more than ten billion dollars (9.11 billion euros).
This has become difficult because the company acquisitions that financial investors usually finance with debt are no longer as easy as they used to be. The background to this is the rise in interest rates and the economic slowdown, which are fueling fears of a recession.
According to insiders, more than ten financial investors are offering for the snack chain, including Bain, TPG, Advent, TDR, Goldman Sachs and Roark. However, they are only willing to pay 8.5 to 10 billion dollars.
Founded in 1965
Subway was founded in 1965 by then 17-year-old Fred DeLuca and his friend Peter Buck. The company expanded by granting franchise licenses to independent landlords. Around 37,000 restaurants around the world sell sandwiches under the Subway logo. According to the company, sales in the first quarter rose by more than twelve percent on a comparable basis.
