UK - New Look IPO off

Rumours that Apax and Permira were going to float portfolio company New Look were unfounded. The high street fashion retailer looks set to change private equity hands, with Merrill Lynch appointed to run an auction. KKR, CVC and Texas Pacific Group are all reported to have shown an interest in the business. The deal would represent the tertiary buyout of the Weymouth-based company, with previous owners including Barclays Private Equity and Prudential Venture Managers who bought it in 1996 for £170m.