THE founder of Iceland Foods is going head-to-head with private equity firms to gain control of the frozen food chain.

Malcolm Walker set up the company more than 40 years ago, and has seen it grow to a business with more than 800 stores across the UK and a value of around £1.5bn. However, it is being sold off by creditors of Icelandic bank Landsbanki, which bought the company in 2008 but collapsed during the downturn.

Walker and other members of the senior management team own 23% of the company, but it is believed private equity firms Bain Capital and BC Partners remain in the race. Morrisons and Asda are believed to be unlikely to bid, and Walker told the Sunday Times he had rejected several approaches to work on a bid with private equity firms. He has instead gained £150m worth of backing from a Canadian pension fund.

He said: “I’ve worked independently my entire career and the idea of working for other people is just too difficult. I thought long and hard and I’m now 100% sure it’s the right thing for us to do this alone. If I can buy the business with my management team, I will do that at the right price.”