Deals

Blackstone-Backed Leica Camera Weighs €1 Billion Sale

An employee assembles a Leica camera at the Leica factory in Wetzlar, Germany.

Photographer: Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images

Leica Camera AG’s owners are considering a sale of a controlling stake in the German camera maker, which could be valued at about €1 billion ($1.2 billion) in a deal, according to people familiar with the matter.

Austrian billionaire Andreas Kaufmann and Blackstone Inc. are speaking to advisers on the potential deal, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is private. HSG, formerly known as Sequoia Capital China, and Altor Equity Partners are among a handful of bidders for the business, the people said.