He did not mention any potential bid on his part. Reuters reported last month that Yahoo had shortlisted close to 10 bidders in the auction for its assets, with most offers coming from private equity firms.Īt Berkshire Hathaway's annual meeting last month, Buffett admitted that Berkshire had been slow to adapt to new technology as far as its investments were concerned.īuffett, whose Berkshire is an IBM shareholder, said in a CNBC interview on May 2 that Yahoo's business had deteriorated significantly and that "something has to change there". Quicken Loans declined to comment on behalf of Gilbert, while Yahoo declined to comment.
Buffett offered no immediate comment when reached by telephone. The sources asked not to be identified because the details of the sale process are confidential.
It is not clear whether Gilbert, a billionaire who also owns the US basketball team Cleveland Cavaliers, is using Quicken Loans in any way as part of the consortium's bid. Buffett is helping finance the offer, one of the people added. The consortium is in the second round of bidding in the auction for Yahoo's assets, the people said. The consortium's participation in the sale process also represents a challenge to US telecommunications carrier Verizon Communications, whose deal to acquire AOL last year for $4.4 billion has made it a favourite to prevail in its bid for Yahoo's assets among industry analysts. While there is no certainty that the consortium will prevail in the auction, the interest of Buffett and Gilbert is a boost for the Sunnyvale, California-based company, which has been surpassed in recent years by rivals such as Alphabet in the race for Internet users and advertising dollars. Berkshire Hathaway chairman Warren Buffett is backing a consortium vying for Yahoo's Internet assets that includes Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert, people familiar with the matter said.