Walmart has entered exclusive talks with TDR Capital over the sale of Asda.
The private equity house has emerged as the leading bidder for a majority stake in the supermarket chain, which will value Asda at more than £6.5bn.
TDR is leading a group of investors including petrol station billionaires Mohsin and Zuber Issa of EG Group.
Asda owns the freehold to 75% of its stores, making it attractive to private equity buyers as they use the collateral for loans or to raise cash through sale-and-leasebacks. It is understood that the consortium would use debt to fund a large portion of the deal.
Based in Leeds, Asda has 631 stores, including 580 supermarkets and 18 standalone filling stations.
