IBM leads race for Satyam buy

Global IT giant IBM is understood to be the front-runner to acquire Satyam Computer Solutions, a company it named as one of its main competitors in a filing to the New York Stock Exchange in February.

The US major, said sources close to the developments, has begun discussions with Satyam's government-nominated board and expressed its desire to acquire a majority stake in the company. A team of investment bankers and lawyers from the US and Europe has been brought in to assess the size of the deal and the risks associated with it. The company is also understood to have conducted an initial due diligence on some of Satyam's major customers.