Issa brother seeks to offload his Asda stake
THE rift between the billionaire brothers who co-own Asda deepened last night amid reports that one is trying to offload his stake in the debt-laden grocer.
Zuber Issa, 51, is said to be exploring a sale of his 22.5 per cent share of the supermarket chain – three years after buying it in a highly leveraged £6.8billion deal with brother Mohsin and private equity group TDR Capital.
It comes after yesterday’s Daily Mail revealed Mohsin, 52, is engaged to a high-flying accountant who used to work at Asda’s auditors. His extra-marital affair has rocked the Issas, forcing him to leave his wife of 30 years and quit the family compound near Blackburn for a nearby mansion. Zuber reportedly wants to focus on EG Group, the petrol forecourt retailer he founded in 2001, which he also co-owns with Mohsin and TDR.
He wants at least £500million for his Asda stake but both Mohsin and TDR would have to approve any sale. It is unclear if the talks have moved beyond the exploratory stage.
But news of a possible stake sale heaps more uncertainty on Asda, Britain’s third largest supermarket chain, which has been losing market share to the discounters Aldi and Lidl. Mohsin has run Leeds-based Asda in the absence of a chief executive since 2021.
But MPs investigating the debt-fuelled takeover have criticised his lack of food retailing experience and an inability to answer basic questions about Asda’s finances.
He met Victoria Price, 41, when she presented him and Zuber with an entrepreneur of the year award at a glitzy ceremony in Manchester in 2018. The gong was sponsored by Big Four accountancy firm EY, where Ms Price was a partner specialising in tax.
Her lawyers confirmed the relationship but said she had never worked on the Asda account and was not an audit partner.
The couple asked for privacy for themselves and their families. Asda denies there is a feud between the two brothers.