Sic transit gloria mundi

From the Financial Times :

January 15 : "HeidelbergCement is looking for ways to bolster its balance sheet, as the debt-ridden German cement maker owned by the billionaire Merckle family comes under heavy pressure from its banks. The cement maker said it aimed to extend the maturities of its bank financing, strengthen its equity base and sell non-strategic assets."

January 16 : "Goldman Sachs, TPG and Bain Capital are considering an investment in HeidelbergCement, the debt-ridden cement maker belonging to the family of Adolf Merckle, the German billionaire who committed suicide last week. People familiar with the buy-out groups on Friday said the three had joined forces to express interest in a large stake in one of the biggest cement makers in the world, preferably giving them majority control of the company."

Read : http://www.ft.com/cms/s/3bebe2a8-e3cb-11dd-8274-0000779fd2ac,Authorised=false.html?_i_location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fcms%2Fs%2F0%2F3bebe2a8-e3cb-11dd-8274-0000779fd2ac.html&_i_referer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fhome%2Feurope.

A bad case of indigestion for HeidelbergCement, and the vultures are circling their prey.

The beginning of the end for one of the major cement groups worldwide ? With all my sympathy for its employees. I know how it feels ...