Bain and KKR said to vie for Japanese govt support in Toshiba chip bids

San Francisco

KKR & Co and Bain Capital LP are vying for support from Japan's government in their efforts to acquire Toshiba Corp's semiconductor division as the Japanese company's board meets on Thursday to consider bids, according to sources.

The US private equity firms are competing for the backing of two state-supported funds, Innovation Network Corp of Japan and Development Bank of Japan, seen as essential in winning government approval for an acquisition, said the sources. Western Digital Corp, which jointly owns certain chip assets with Toshiba, has also had discussions with both firms, the sources said.