Morrisons, ranked fourth among U.K. supermarkets, has been acquired by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) with a bid of $9.5 billion.  The final offer exceeded the $7.5 billion offered in July and beat two competing offers from U.S. investment groups.  The bid that will be reviewed and approved by the Board represents a considerable premium over the current share price.  The Morrisons’ chain includes 500 stores and employs 110,000.

Sir Terry Leahy, the former CEO of Tesco, served as an advisor to CD&R.  He stated, “We continue to believe that Morrisons’ is an excellent business with a strong management team, a clear strategy, and good prospects.”

There is concern that acquisitions, including the ASDA transaction in February will increase the debt carried by the acquired chains and alter the traditional policies and operation of domestic supermarkets in the U.K.