3i sells Mayborn to China's Jahwa, gets 3.5 times investment

(Reuters) - British private equity firm 3i Group Plc (III.L) said on Thursday it would sell baby products maker Mayborn Group to China's Shanghai Jahwa United Co , in a deal that would net it 3.5 times its initial investment.

3i said it would get proceeds of 135 million pounds from the sale. The PE firm took Mayborn private in 2006 in a deal worth 200 million euros, according to 3i's website.

The deal gives Mayborn an enterprise value of about 300 million pounds, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday, confirming a figure reported by Sky News earlier in April.

Mayborn owns Tommee Tippee, one of the world's top baby feeding brands. Under 3i, Mayborn has expanded through new products and acquisitions and had sales of 130 million pounds in 2015, about 60 percent of which came from international markets.

Tommee Tippee's feeding, hygiene and soothing products are sold in more than 70 countries, including in the UK by retailers such as Tesco Plc (TSCO.L) and Mothercare Plc (MTC.L).

Jahwa, a Chinese chemical products maker, had said two weeks back that its controlling investor, Ping An Insurance Group , was in talks to buy a stake in Mayborn, refuting the Sky News report that said Jahwa itself was in talks to buy Mayborn.

Jahwa could not be reached by phone or email for comment.

3i, the owner of lingerie retailer Agent Provocateur and Benelux retailer Action, has been on a selling spree to rebalance its PE business. The firm sold assets totalling 403 million pounds in nine months to December.

($1 = 0.6853 pounds)

(Reporting by Rahul B in Bengaluru; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier and Savio D'Souza)