Pharmacy chain Boots could be sold for €6bn

Boots has 89 outlets in Ireland employing more than 2,000 people.

The Boots sale has emerged as a litmus test for dealmaking as credit markets become increasingly fragile. Picture: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg

A consortium of Apollo Global Management and Reliance Industries has made a binding offer for Boots pharmacy chain.

The investor group this week submitted a bid for the chain, currently controlled by US retail giant Walgreens, that’s fully backed by committed financing, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. Their proposal values Boots at more than £5bn (€5.86bn), one of the people said.