Apex Capital Trust is submitting a bid to acquire Paramount Global for up to $43 billion

(Reuters) -Apex Capital Trust has submitted a competitive bid to acquire Paramount Global in an all-cash deal for up to $43 billion, the investment firm said on Wednesday.

Paramount will have a 45-day “go-shop” period after its merger deal with David Ellison’s Skydance Media during which it can receive a new deal.

Paramount and National Amusements did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

Apex, a holding company and investor in the financial sector, said it has offered to buy all shares in National Amusements, a company that has a controlling stake in Paramount. It has offered $35 per share for Class A voting stock, which the company says represents a 33% premium to the stock’s 52-week high.

The rival bidder is also offering $23.28 per share for Class B non-voting shares of Paramount, or a 33% premium.

Apex said it would assume Paramount’s $15.8 billion debt and pay the $400 million breakage to Skydance for free. It said it would give the media company $10 billion in working capital to implement its business plan.

“Paramount and its assets are a national treasure, and we intend to treat them accordingly,” Tatiana Logan, general counsel of Apex Trust, said in a statement.

(Reporting by Harshita Mary Varghese in Bangalore and Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Chizu Nomiyama)