Private Equity Stakes

Yesterday, Office Depot announced that BC Partners, a leading private equity firm, has invested $350mn in the business. Over time, this could give the private equity firm a stake of roughly 20% in Office Depot.

In a similar deal earlier in the week, Bain Capital agreed to take a stake of up to 23% in China's GOME Electrical Appliance Holdings.

Reuters explained that private equity firms typically seek to take majority control of the firms they invest in, but as leverage has been scarce, minority stake deals have become increasingly common.