BlackBerry Ltd’s U.S. shares rose 3 percent on Monday after a report that a Canadian investor was closing in on a rescue deal for the battered smartphone maker that put itself up for sale last month.<\/p>\n
The company’s shares rose to $11.17 in premarket trading after closing at $10.84 on the regular Nasdaq session after a report in Britain’s Sunday Times newspaper that Canadian investor Prem Watsa has backing from pension funds for a bid.<\/p>\n
BlackBerry representatives were not immediately available for a comment.<\/p>\n
Watsa’s company, Fairfax Financial Holdings, is BlackBerry’s biggest shareholder with 10 percent, and is seen as key to any decision about a sale of the Canadian company.<\/p>\n
Watsa stepped down from BlackBerry’s board in August citing a potential conflict of interest with the company’s announcement that it was exploring strategic alternatives.<\/p>\n
BlackBerry sale gets more serious<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n BlackBerry to explore alternative strategies<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Going private is no panacea for BlackBerry<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n