Unilever spreads division interests private equity pair, £6bn bid rumoured

Unilever could soon receive a bid for its spreads division in the realms of £6bn from private equity firms Clayton Dubilier & Rice and Bain Capital, according to a report on Tuesday.

Last week, chief financial officer Graeme Pitkethly, said that he was confident that there would be, "a lot of excitement" around the spreads division, which the consumer goods giant put on the block in April as it rejected a £115bn takeover from Kraft Heinz.

In late 2014, the group separated the spreads arm from its wider food division into a standalone unit.

When it announced results last week, the company said preparations to auction the division were well under way, but the CD&R and Bain partnership is thought to be the first notable consortium to come forward, according to a report from Sky News.

Chief executive Paul Polman said the group expected to be able to make an announcement on the future of its spreads business "towards the end of this year".

Bain, which was the company that plucked Worldpay from the Royal Bank of Scotland in 2010, did not have any comment to make on the matter, nor did CDR.