Amdocs, Oracle bid for Comverse billing unit
Companies, which showed interest in acquiring Comverse last year, holding initial negotiations with Goldman Sachs, which previously helped billing company sell Ulticom
Both software giants are already engaged in initial talks regarding the acquisition with Goldman Sachs, which for the past two years has been a strategic advisor to Comverse Technology's board and had helped Comverse sell its subsidiary Ulticom.
Last week, the Reuters news agency reported that Comverse Technology was negotiating with several bodies, among them some large technology corporations, over the sale of its billing division of its subsidiary Comverse (formerly CNS).
Comverse Technology had already held such negotiations last year with potential buyers, among them Amdocs and Oracle; however, at the time negotiations were for the acquisition of all of Comverse whereas current negotiations are for the company's billing division alone.
Another potential buyer is Gores Capital, which took part in last year's negotiations.
Comverse's current valuation on the market is $750-$850 million; however, Cadian Capital Management estimates that Comverse alone may reach a $2 billion valuation, which means that the billing division in itself may reach a $1 billion valuation, although this is a seemingly high price tag for a company that generates some $320 million in earnings a year.
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