http://www.ad-hoc-news.de/bearingpoint-reaches-agreement-to-sell-key-business-unit–/de/Unternehmensnachrichten/20124824

http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20090323006350&newsLang=en

http://www.google.com/finance?q=OTC:BGPTQ – Bearing point Stock price will start soaring upside based on the announcement I believe.

Consulting firm BearingPoint Inc (BGPTQ.OB) said it agreed to sell a large portion of its public services unit to Deloitte [DLTE.UL] for $350 million.

The company, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last month, said it also signed a non-binding letter of intent to sell a substantial part of its North American Commercial Services business to PricewaterhouseCoopers [PWC.UL] for $25 million.

PwC’s Japanese unit is also in negotiations to buy BearingPoint’s consulting business in Japan.

Separately, BearingPoint is in the late stage of discussions with local companies interested in acquiring its European and Latin American practices, the company said in a statement on Monday.

AlixPartners and Greenhill & Co are acting as financial advisers to McLean, Virginia-based BearingPoint. (Reporting by Elinor Comlay, Editing by Ian Geoghegan)

Economic downturns often present attractive opportunities to strengthen a business and to sprint ahead of the competition. In fact, we’re in front of one right now….one that could — if it comes to fruition — help us advance our PwC strategy and position us to emerge from this downturn stronger than we went in.

Yesterday, we reached an agreement in principle and signed a non-binding letter of intent with BearingPoint and its secured lenders to acquire selected U.S. contracts, assets and key employees of their Financial Services and Commercial Services practices. We expect to receive contracts with a $200 million revenue stream. At the same time, PwC Japan has reached an agreement in principle to acquire BearingPoint’s entire Japanese consulting practice, with a $175 million revenue stream.

This transaction, if it closes successfully, represents one more step among many that collectively advance our strategic agenda — namely our commitment to help clients create and sustain lasting change. In short, we expect to strengthen our credentials to help our clients successfully undertake large-scale business transformation projects by expanding our strength in areas such as strategy, planning, operations and technology — particularly with respect to SAP and Oracle expertise. While we are not getting back into the large-scale IT implementation business, those IT credentials are essential, in some cases, for PwC to advise our clients on their successful undertaking of large-scale business transformation projects. In addition to gaining new talent, top-tier clients and a broad new portfolio of contracts, we are also acquiring certain intellectual property, including proven methodologies, templates and thought leadership that will help our overall Advisory business.

We emphasize that this is just a bid at this point — not a completed transaction. And there’s no guarantee that our bid will be awarded. In fact, in many respects, the process is just beginning.

Highlights of the process ahead
The transaction is subject to execution of a definitive asset purchase agreement and Bankruptcy Court approval. It is anticipated that, consistent with normal bankruptcy procedures and prior to approval of the definitive agreement by the Bankruptcy Court, the Court will require the initiation of a process to market the business to third parties. BearingPoint will support our bid during this process based on our agreement in principle. During this phase, however, other bids may emerge. The final decision will be made by the Court based on the highest and best offer. As you can see, there are a number of procedural thresholds needed to close this transaction and this process is expected to take several weeks.

Why this makes sense for all of us
So, what exactly are we seeking to acquire? Why are we are pursuing this transaction in this economic climate? What, precisely, would the impact be on your work, your job and your opportunities here at PwC? Again, it’s still early in the process, but since it’s natural to feel some anxiety about any type of change when the economy is in difficult straits, let’s speak to these questions directly.

Advancing Advisory’s ability to help clients create and sustain change. Here’s what we’re seeking to acquire: key contracts and new clients — primarily in energy, utilities, insurance, pharmaceuticals, and life sciences — along with key people and certain intellectual property critical to meet these new contractual obligations. Helping clients “anticipate, create and manage change” is the mission that drives our entire Advisory consulting practice. If we close this transaction, we gain valuable assets and an exceptional range of expertise central to this mission.
Emerging from the downturn stronger than we went in requires savvy and opportunistic investments. As we have said before, we are in difficult times and are feeling the impact of the economic headwinds on our business. So it is critical that we continue to be judicious with costs, cautious about our compensation policies, and focused on delivering the PwC Experience to our clients. It is also critical to continue investing in our people, looking ahead and making the right long-term decisions for the Firm. This transaction allows us to address each one of these priorities. How? Because, informed by our due diligence findings, the bid we are presenting is only for the assets that are directly aligned with our strategy, valued at what we believe is a fair economic price. In other words, if we close this transaction, it will be on our own terms — strategic, financial and economic.
This opportunity is about acquiring complementary new talents. As with prior Advisory acquisitions in 2008 (Entology, NDS), this transaction is overwhelmingly about acquiring new talent, capabilities, contracts and client relationships that specifically advance and enhance our Advisory and Firm strategy. We view the key people and talents we may be acquiring as strategically complementary to the goals we are all working to achieve. And with greater bench strength in key areas — such as strategy, planning, operations and technology — we can strengthen the PwC Experience for our clients and expand opportunities for ourselves, not just now but later, when markets come surging back.

Undoubtedly, you will have many additional questions. We ask that you be patient with the process we must go through to bring this to what we hope will be a successful conclusion. As we mentioned above, since the Bankruptcy Court must go through the process of marketing the business to third parties, you may see our competitors or other organizations bidding for the same assets. While we await the next steps, we hope that you are enthusiastic about what this transaction will bring to our clients and our Firm alike. We will continue to provide you with updates as substantive events unfold.