LY, Bain sweeten bid for Japan's Kakaku.com, topping EQT offer

- SoftBank-backed LY Corp 4689.T on Thursday said it and Bain Capital have lifted their bid for Kakaku.com 2371.T, valuing the online marketplace at $4 billion and above a rival offer from Swedish investment firm EQT EQTAB.ST.


  • LY, which owns messaging app LINE and Yahoo Japan, said they are now offering 3,232 yen per share in an all-cash deal. That is up from 3,000 yen per share they offered a week ago. EQT has also offered 3,000 yen per share in a deal backed by Kakaku.com's board announced on Tuesday.

  • "Amid the current period of transformation driven by the rise of generative AI, the businesses operated by Kakaku.com...are considered to have extremely high strategic value," LY said.

  • Kakaku.com shares were trading around 3,400 yen, down 0.5%, indicating that some investors expect the bidding war to continue. LY shares were down 0.7%.

  • Kakaku.com operates price comparison site Kakaku.com, restaurant review and reservation platform Tabelog and job search service Kyujin Box.

  • Kakaku.com said on Tuesday when announcing that it was recommending EQT's offer, that Digital Garage 4819.T and KDDI 9433.T, which together hold 38.1% of the company, had agreed to sell their shares.