Leica AG is a company that is no stranger to photography and camera enthusiasts. Many of their cameras come with a high nostalgic value, as well as build and image quality that is difficult to match by other camera manufacturers.
Recently, it was reported that the majority owner of Leica AG, Andres Kaufmann and Blackstone Inc. are in talks to sell a majority stake in the company to interested parties. Andreas Kaufmann is the founder of ACM Projektentwicklung GmbH which is the majority shareholder of Leica at 55 percent, while Blackstone Inc. holds the remaining 45 percent.
Leica has recorded record sales for the fourth consecutive year, and both parties may think that this is the best time to see if anyone is interested in owning a stake in the company.
Several reports say that among the companies that may be interested in buying this equity include HongShan Capital Group from China and Altor Equity Partners from Sweden. The value of the shares that both parties want to sell is reportedly worth approximately $1.2 billion, but they will reportedly not sell the holdings if no agreement can be reached.
