Investors are growing more skeptical that a tentative US$4.7-billion bid for smartphone maker BlackBerry Ltd. will succeed, with the stock trading at the biggest discount among similar North American takeovers.

Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd.’s $9-a-share tentative offer for BlackBerry is 17% higher than the current stock price, the widest spread of 109 announced deals worth US$1-billion or more, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. BlackBerry fell 0.4% to $7.70 at 1 p.m. in New York, dropping its market value to US$4-billion.

The slide reflects shareholder concerns about Fairfax Chief Executive Officer Prem Watsa’s ability to secure his partners’ commitment and financing before a Nov. 4 deadline. Watsa said when he announced the Sept. 23 offer that he had yet to secure financing and would only name his partners after they had done the due diligence and were fully committed. http://business.financialpost.com/2013/10/04/blackberry-ltds-share-...