Abu Dhabi’s L’Imad joins Paramount backers in Warner Bros. bidding war

Little-known Abu Dhabi state investment vehicle L’Imad Holding Co. has joined the fray in the Warner Bros. bidding war, backing a new $108 billion hostile offer from David Ellison’s Paramount, along with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, the Qatar Investment Authority and Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners.

Under the renewed bid, the three Gulf funds will provide $24 billion, the Financial Times reports. RedBird Capital Partners and Larry Ellison will backstop the $40.7 billion of equity in the $30-a-share bid, while Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc. and Apollo Global Management Inc. are providing the debt commitment via a bridge loan, Bloomberg reports.

Paramount Skydance is attempting to torpedo Netflix’s $72 billion deal, made last week following a three-way contest which also included Comcast.

L’Imad, which is replacing the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority in the latest iteration of the Paramount bid, first made headlines in October when it bought a $7 billion stake in real estate investor Modon from IHC Real Estate Holding and Alpha Dhabi Holding, both subsidiaries of Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed’s International Holding Co.