"I would think that both strategic and financial acquirers are going to be busy this holiday season."

MARGIN CALLS

Speculation of private equity interest and a management change saw Satyam stock jump as much as 9.5 per cent on Tuesday, extending Monday's gain of 9.4 per cent to its highest in a week.

Satyam's promoters, headed by its chairman, held 8.74 per cent in Satyam as on March 31, 2008, while institutional investors owned 61 per cent of the company, according to information on the firm's website.

Satyam has said the promoter's stake may have been diluted as institutional lenders, with whom the promoters had pledged all their shares, may already have exercised options to liquidate shares to cover margin calls.

Aberdeen Asset Management, one of the largest shareholders in Satyam, said on Tuesday it was open to the idea of an investor picking up a stake in the outsourcer with a view to bringing in new management to protect shareholders' interest.

Satyam's market value has plunged about 31 per cent to 106 billion rupees ($2.2 billion) since it announced plans to buy the sister firms.

Brokerage Edelweiss said a global major such as IBM or Capgemini coming in as a strategic investor in Satyam was "palatable option" because of the synergies and the ability to get offshore work done at a cheaper cost.

A technology firm would also be best placed to replace Satyam management and provide new leadership, it said.

"Thus, IBM, a name bandied about so often in the past, still seems the most likely horse needed to ride out Satyam and its management," Viju George and Kunal Sangoi of Edelweiss wrote in a report. "The name of Capgemini is (also) doing the rounds."

... contd.