Well, it looks like the record-making squabble for ABN Amro
After the expiration of Barclays'
But in this case, to the victor go ... well, a lot of question marks. The consortium went on the warpath for ABN before serious market turmoil set in, and major LBO deals made people accept this as a relatively logical deal. Now, the market looks questionable, the price looks iffy at best, and the three "winners" face the challenge of carving up a massive global bank and integrating it into their respective businesses.
If that's winning, then count me out.
So is anybody smiling here? You betcha. All of the investment banks working on the deal stand to take home a pretty penny when this deal officially closes. Among this group of beneficiaries are Lehman Brothers
And don't lose sleep over the fate of the bankers that advised Barclays on its losing bid -- they are expected to take home more than $400 million in fees even without closing the deal. This group includes Citigroup