Paris, Jul. 17 - French dairy and soft drinks Groupe Danone said Tuesday it will borrow from French bank BNP Paribas and British bank Royal Bank of Scotland PLC to finance its acquisition of Dutch company Numico.
"Our banks are BNP and Royal Bank of Scotland," a Danone spokesman told Dow Jones Newswires.
Asked how much the company would borrow, a Danone spokesman declined to comment and refered to the July 10 press conference during which Danone's Chief Financial officer Antoine Giscard d'Estaing said the acquisition will be "entirely financed by debt."
According to a Paris-based analyst who declined to be named, Danone could borrow as much as EUR11 billion.
Groupe Danone has offered EUR55 a share for Numico, valuing the Dutch company at EUR12.3 billion.
The offer price represents a 44% premium to Numico's average closing share price over the past three months.