BPP University to be sold ‘within weeks’, report claims

Private equity giant TDR Capital looks set to snap up law school

BPP University is reportedly on the cusp of being sold.

The website EducationInvestor Global reports that Asda-owning TDR Capital is in “advanced discussions” about snapping up BPP University and that a deal could be clinched “within weeks”, according to its sources. BPP declined to comment.

Like its major rival, The University of Law, BPP University and its law school is a private, for-profit institution owned by investors.

The ownership of BPP University proceeds up a chain of companies culminating in Apollo Global Management, a US-headquartered investment management and private equity outfit, according to records at Companies House.

BPP last changed hands in 2009 for $607 million (then £373 million) but a reported sale attempt in 2019 was abandoned after no buyer came through. Apollo Global has $455 billion (£324 billion) under management.

TDR Capital owns a host of companies in the UK and beyond, including David Lloyd Leisure, Stonegate Pubs and half of the EG Group of petrol stations. It recently formed part of a consortium that bought Asda from Walmart, subject to clearance from the competition watchdog.