British Firm Bags Samsonite for $1.7B

CVC Capital, a British private equity firm, has bought out Samsonite, the American luggage line, in an all-cash deal worth $1.7B, BBC reports. CVC will pay $1.49 a share--12% more than the stock was worth Tuesday. Samonsite has had five owners in the last 21 years, as luggage sales in general have declined.

Samsonite is just the latest public firm to be acquired by private equity. Since they raise money from banks rather than the stock market, such companies are not required to issue annual reports and have been criticized in some quarters for operating in secret and paying less tax than public firms. Samsonite's management will remain with the company. (More Samsonite stories.)