Bain bids for time on Warner Chilcott bid

Bain Capital, the US private equity house, attempted to scupper an immediate takeover of Warner Chilcott last night, as the women's healthcare company closed in on a deal with a rival buyout group.

Bain Capital, the US private equity house, attempted to scupper an immediate takeover of Warner Chilcott last night, as the women's healthcare company closed in on a deal with a rival buyout group.

Bain, leading a consortium with The Carlyle Group and Thomas H Lee, urged shareholders to take no action even if, as planned, Warner Chilcott's management agrees a £1.6bn takeover this morning.

A private equity consortium led by Goldman Sachs was the favourite going into the final hours of talks last night. It tabled an 837p-a-share bid last week and encouraged Warner Chilcott to set a deadline of last night for higher offers.

One insider said: "Management were pleasantly surprised at 837p and John King [the chairman, who owns 8 per cent] is keen to know what he can spend for Christmas."

A combination of CSFB and JP Morgan was the only other potential bidder last night, although it may have hit a glitch as Warburg Pincus was heard to have pulled out of its consortium.

Bain's decision to go public, insisting that it is within 48 hours of making a bid of its own, is aimed at preventing Goldman Sachs or CSFB entering the market to buy shares, making a rival bid impossible.