Hands' regrets (take 2)

SORRY SEEMS TO BE THE HARDEST WORD: Guy Hands may be itching to make another move on EMI, as recent media reports have speculated, but he seemed defeated yesterday in a letter to Terra Firma investors. Sounding like a conquered general, the battered private equity baron said that he’d wanted to put more equity into EMI, but he and his lenders as Citigroup couldn’t agree on the valuation. “We are disappointed that we could not reach an agreement with Citigroup (despite great efforts from our side) that would have involved us putting in more equity simultaneously with Citigroup writing down their debt.” Hands also promised to try to pay investors back for the money he’d persuaded them to pony up to meet debt covenants and avoid default before losing that battle last month. (2/23a)