Riverdeep MBO set to receive the all clear

THE Riverdeep management team led by chief executive Barry O’Callaghan is expected to announce today that more than half the company’s independent shareholders have accepted the offer.

Riverdeep said on Friday that eight separate would-be investors had declined to make an alternative offer for the company, making it likely the $376 million (€349 million) management buyout move will now get the all clear.

It’s understood that those interested in the company founded by Dubliner Pat McDonagh included Dermot Desmond, Microsoft, WRC Media and Renaissance Learning, a major competitor of the e-learning software group.