9 January 2024 - Private equity and the retail sector - Oral evidence

Asda ownership and funding structure architects to face MP questions

Key figures from the private equity firm that are the principal architects of Asda’s ownership structure will be questioned by MPs on the Business and Trade Committee on 9 January.

The session, at which the venture capital industry body will also feature, follows a series of hearings examining the use of leveraged private equity buyouts in retail, of which Asda’s is one example. The witnesses are likely to be questioned on:

• The trade-offs of high-debt leveraged buyouts and the impact on working conditions;
• The rationale and consequences of Asda’s acquisition of EG Group UK and Ireland operations;
• The future implications for private equity following rises in interest rates over the last two years.