THE WHAT?  U.S. buyout firm Apollo Global and India’s second-richest man Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries firm are said to be joining forces to place a bid for Boots, according to the Financial Times. 

THE DETAILS Should the bid be successful, it will see the British retailer expanding into India, south-east Asia and the Middle East. 

While sources with knowledge state that both parties would own equity stakes in Boots under one plan, it’s not clear how large each individual stake would be. 

THE WHY? The potential bid follows a difficult sales process for Boots, which saw Bain Capital and CVC Capital Partner drop out of the running. 

Brothers Mohsin and Zuber Issa, owners of UK supermarket chain Asda, and private equity group TDR Capital have also made an initial bid for Boots.