The telecom was owned by a Japanese private equity firm, which was having a hard time getting approval from U.S. regulators for a sale, given the number of critical government agencies that depended on it for communications services.
Huntsman’s friend “needed a U.S. family, someone the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. would agree to, since any sensitive asset that involves the national security of the country has to be approved by CFIUS,” he said. The Huntsmans partnered with local Guam families on the 2017 deal, terms of which weren’t disclosed.
HFI’s focus on investments linked to national security wasn’t intentional, Huntsman said. But the office tends to like mature businesses that have good cash flow and high barriers to entry.
“It’s very similar to how my father looked at the chemical businesses,” he said.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.