Cerberus Capital Management (CCM) recently released an announcement that outlined the company's intention to acquire Affiliated Computer Services, Inc., or ACS, by making a move to purchase all of the outstanding common stock shares of ACS that are available. This would result in a transaction value of approximately $8.2 billion, which Cerberus says will be funded in part by CitiCorp Global Markets. Cerberus is not going it alone in this deal and they are actually partnering with the founder and chairman of the board of ACS, Darwin Deason.

Deason, who plans to continue to serve as the Executive Chairman after the deal is completed, made assurances that the Affiliated Computer Services would continue to operate according to the current practices and policies of ACS and will endeavor to maintain the cultivation of its highly valued employee base. According to a Cerberus spokesman, the pool of talented and experienced employees of ACS is "one of its most important assets." In addition, both Deason and Cerberus state that ACS will continue to provide the valuable management knowledge and high quality asset management services that ACS customers have come to expect.

The investment partnership of Cerberus Capital Management and Mr. Deason have agreed to immediately start negotiations with Affiliated Computer Services and are hoping to be able to complete the transaction quickly. Even though Deason is the founder and current chairman of ACS, the partners still plan to conduct the customary due diligence process. 

The question also naturally arises of any type of conflict of interest in the structure of the deal. However, neither CCM nor Mr. Deason anticipate that there will be any impediments to completion of the transaction or any regulatory approvals that might get in the way of a timely and smooth closing of the deal.

CCM and Deason have agreed to jointly submit their proposal to the Board of Directors of ACS and negotiate with a specially selected committee of independent company directors. The investment partnership is confident that their complete proposal and the process of negotiation and due diligence will result in an agreement that is in the best interest of all parties involved, including the public shareholders of ACS. They also expect that their proposal will be subject to typical market scrutiny and discussion but are confident of the overall plan they are proposing.

Cerberus Capital Management was started in 1992. Since that time, Cerberus has grown to become world renowned and considered to be a strong leader in the area of providing asset management services. They have been providing top-of-the-line investment management services to a diverse range of clients and now manage funds estimated at a value of more than $25 billion. They are also well-known for the depth of asset management knowledge and experience that they are able to offer to their clients.
 

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