Yum! Brands is selling off its Pizza Hut chain of restaurants in a confirmed deal worth $2.7 billion USD. The new buyers are private equity firm LongRange Capital, who will acquire the brand outside of mainland China, while Yum China Holdings will deal with the operations on mainland China.
According to the BBC, LongRange Capital put forwards $1.5 billion to buy the non-China brand, while Yum China paid $1.2 billion for mainland China alone. "Under LongRange and Yum China, Pizza Hut will be well positioned for future growth with ownership that brings deep expertise in the restaurant industry," said Yum! Brands chief executive Chris Turner.
Pizza Hut has been up for sale officially since November of last year, where Yum! Brands said it was exploring giving up the struggling restaurant chain. It had seen several declining quarters for Pizza Hut restaurants in the US, a key area for the chain.
Rivals like Domino's, Papa John's, and more have driven up competition, and it seems Pizza Hut has been left to chill. Delivery apps have also flooded the market with other options, and as Pizza Hut struggled to deal with its bigger competitors, it also couldn't match the lower price offerings of smaller restaurants, too.