Speed and certainty won last week's €1.85bn ($2.18bn) acquisition by private equity firms of the European beverage arm of Cadbury Schweppes, according to an adviser to the winning consortium of Blackstone and Lion Capital.

Akeel Sachak, global co-head of consumer at NM Rothschild, said Lion and Blackstone probably gained a tactical advantage in the final round of bidding over their rivals, French private equity firm PAI Partners and Permira of the UK, "by offering more security and certainty about the transaction more quickly than the other bidders".