BankUnited deal to open the door to private equity acquiring banks?

Filed under: Private equity, Goldman Sachs Group (GS), Blackstone Group L.P (BX), Financial Crisis

In what could be the most watched private equity deal of the year, a consortium of buyout firms led by billionaire investor Wilbur L. Ross has set its sights on BankUnited Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: BKUNA), says the Wall Street Journal (subscription required). The consortium includes Carlyle Group and Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX).

Earlier this year, federal regulators declared that the Florida-based lender was "critically undercapitalized" and demanded that it find a buyer or raise new capital. While regulators have traditionally favored other lenders in sales of banks, if Ross's group is successful, it would not only be one of the largest acquisitions in the financial-services sector made by private equity, but could also signal a shift in the government's attitude toward private-equity buyers of banks.

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BankUnited deal to open the door to private equity acquiring banks? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 18 May 2009 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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