Huawei shortlists bidders for its mobile devices unit

Five private equity firms have been shortlisted as possible buyers of Huawei Technologies’ mobile devices division, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The bidders are said to include Bain Capital, Silver Lake, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Goldman Sachs’s private equity arm. The Journal’s sources added that Blackstone Group, TPG and Carlyle Group were among the bidders that failed to make the shortlist. Huawei’s mobile devices division – which is responsible for products including mobile phones and wireless data cards for laptops – is valued at more than US$4 billion. The prospective investors have offered to purchase around 50% of the division. Any deal is likely to rank as the largest or second-largest private-equity investment in mainland China.