Amid rumours that other potential buyers were still in the running, BCE Inc. announced Teachers Private Capital – the investment arm of the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan – Providence Equity Partners Inc. and Madison Dearborn Partners LLC as the winning bidders for ownership of the Canadian telecom giant. On June 30 BCE said the board of directors recommends shareholders accept the all-cash offer of $51.7 billion for all common shares. The price represents a 40% premium over the average share price in Q1 2007. Reports suggest BCE rival Telus Corp. is still considering mounting a bid, even though the Vancouver firm abruptly pulled out of the process late last week.

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