Surprise Yahoo bidder emerges

 

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By Reuters

Posted on 3 Dec 2008 at 08:20

Former AOL chief executive Jonathan Miller is seeking $30 billion from investors to buy all or part of Yahoo.

Miller wants to raise funds to buy Yahoo for $20 to $22 a share, or $28 billion to $30 billion, for the entire company, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Miller has reportedly talked to private equity investors and sovereign wealth funds for months about raising money for a deal. Yahoo has a market value of $15.7 billion, after losing more than 65% of its value since Microsoft first made its offer.

Speculation about possible deals has been widespread after Microsoft withdrew a $47.5 billion offer to buy Yahoo in May after Yahoo's board and its then-CEO Jerry Yang rejected it as too low.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has ruled out a new Yahoo bid, but has indicated a search deal may still be possible.

However, analysts are skeptical Miller will be able to raise the money, given the current market environment and the shrinking display advertising market.

"Right now I would find it very hard to believe that there is that kind of money lying around to buy Yahoo," says Youssef Squali, an analyst at Jefferies & Co. "Raising even half the amount would be tough."

Sovereign wealth funds~

Sovereign wealth funds may yet come to Yahoo's rescue. Earlier this year, AMD secured substantial investment from a venture capital firm owned by the Abu Dhabi government for a $5.7 billion joint venture.

Miller has discussed the idea with some Yahoo board members but it has not come up for an official board discussion yet, the Journal reports.

In July, Yahoo suggested Miller as a nominee to its board, after investor Carl Icahn agreed to settle his fight in exchange for expanding the board. However, Time Warner blocked Miller's nomination, citing a non-compete agreement that banned him from working for competitors, including Yahoo, until March 2009.