Dell is going private. Founder Michael Dell is leading a leveraged buyout with key financing provided by Microsoft. Michael will end up as the majority owner of what analysts assume will be a scaled-down computer maker. It is one of the biggest LBOs ever.
It is a desperate move, but it is probably the right move for Dell at this point. Somehow we have reached the point where public companies are at a disadvantage in access to capital when they are struggling. Dell is forced to go private to have a better chance of surviving. Other large corporations, I expect, will find themselves in the same position over the next decade.
