Hutchison looks to bring in minority partners for Telefonica's UK unit deal
HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hutchison Whampoa Ltd group finance director Frank Sixt said on Friday the company is in talks with private equity firms among others to offer a minority stake in its planned bid for Telefonica's British unit O2.
Earlier, Hutchison confirmed that it was in exclusive talks to buy O2 for up to 10.25 billion pounds as Asia's richest Li Ka-shing makes his biggest bet to consolidate his European telecommunications operations.
The deal, which is subject to regulatory approval, will be funded using a 6 billion pounds bank loan, Sixt told reporters.
He added the group was reasonably confident of securing European regulatory approval for the transaction.
(Reporting by Denny Thomas)