Private equity firm Cinven is reported to be in final talks over buying Tui’s Hotelbeds unit for at least €1 billion.
The private equity firm is understood to be up against EQT, a Scandinavian investment group that recently bought Swiss travel services company Kuoni Reisen Holding AG, and a Chinese travel group based in Shenzhen, in the final round of bidding.
Europe’s biggest tour operating group put Hotelbeds up for sale at the end of last year, citing strategic reasons.
A sale of the business would follow the disposal of the smaller LateRooms.com business to Cox & Kings for £8.5 million in October.
Cox & Kings then sold LateRooms.com earlier this month together with Superbreak to new holding company Malvern Enterprises.
A Tui spokesman did not confirm the talks and said the process was ongoing, Reuters reported.