2nd UPDATE: Toronto-Dominion, Wilbur Ross Bid On BankUnited
20 May 2009 - 2:23AM
Dow Jones News
Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) and a consortium of private-equity
firms led by billionaire investor Wilbur L. Ross have entered bids
to acquire troubled Florida thrift BankUnited Financial Corp.
(BKUNA), according to people familiar with the matter.
The suitors submitted their offers to the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corp. Tuesday morning ahead of a 12 p.m. EDT deadline,
the people said on condition of anonymity. Federal regulators could
take BankUnited into receivership soon after soliciting bids for
the bank that it deemed "critically undercapitalized."
The bid deadline could also be extended as regulators seek more
buyers, according to one person familiar with the bidding. The bid
deadline has been extended several times already.
Shares of BankUnited, a thrift based in Coral Gables, Fla. with
95 branches around the state, surged 8% to 96 cents a share in
late-morning trading on the Nasdaq. Taking the bank into
receivership would wipe out shareholders.
The consortium of private-equity players includes Carlyle Group
LLC, Blackstone Group LP (BX) and Centerbridge Partners LP. Ross
has hired John Kanas, the former chief executive of North Fork
Bancorp, to help run BankUnited if the deal is successful.
Canada's Toronto-Dominion Bank, which has significant operations
in the U.S. through TD Bank and TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. (AMTD),
has submitted its bid, the people said. Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
(GS) is also attached to TD's bid.
A spokesman for Toronto-Dominion declined to comment, and a
spokesman for Goldman Sachs didn't immediately return telephone
calls. The FDIC also did not immediately return telephone
calls.
J.C. Flowers & Co. was also considered to be interested in
acquiring BankUnited. A person familiar with one of the potential
acquirers said Flowers has not entered a bid. A representative of
J.C. Flowers didn't immediately respond to an email seeking
comment.
- By Joe Bel Bruno, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-4047;
joe.belbruno@dowjones.com