Abu Dhabi firm said to challenge Cerberus bid for Abraaj unit

Abu Dhabi Capital Management, a unit of Abu Dhabi Financial Group, has submitted a $55 million bid to buy the rights to manage Dubai-based Abraaj Group’s funds, challenging an earlier offer from Cerberus Capital Management LP, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

The Abu Dhabi firm has offered to pay Abraaj’s liquidators $30 million for the rights to manage Abraaj’s funds and $25 million to cover the company’s costs and end-of-service payments for employees. It had made a $50 million offer to the firm’s financial adviser when the court-led restructuring process started.

Cerberus bid is valued at $25 million, according to Bloomberg.

Abraaj, currently facing financial collapse, filed for a court-supervised restructuring last month. Earlier this month, many UAE-listed companies announced their exposure to Abraaj's various funds.

Meanwhile, a group of investors in Abraaj’s estimated $1 billion sub-Saharan Africa fund are seeking a new manager, potentially complicating a broader sale process for the asset management unit, the report added.