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Bear Stearns' Cayne, holder seek rival bid: report
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Bear Stearns Cos Inc <BSC.N> Chairman James Cayne and top shareholder Joe Lewis are quietly searching for a bidder that would top the offer from JPMorgan Chase & Co <JPM.N>, the New York Post reported on Wednesday.
Cayne and Lewis have contacted private equity firms, including J.C. Flowers and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co <KKR.UL>, as well as overseas banks Barclays <BARC.L>, HSBC <HSBA.L>, Credit Suisse <CSGN.VX>, and Royal Bank of Scotland <RBS.L>, the paper said, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Cayne and Lewis combined hold nearly 15 percent of the stock of cash-strapped Bear Stearns.
The all-stock offer from JP Morgan values Bear Stearns at about $280 million, compared to its valuation of $7.7 billion a week ago.
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Bear Stearns was not immediately available to comment. JPMorgan declined to comment.
Bear Stearns shares, which have been trading above the offer of about $2.40 at current stock prices, were down 7.1 percent at $5.49 in morning trade on the New York Stock Exchange.
(Reporting by Chris Reiter, editing by Dave Zimmerman)
