Buyout firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts is raising €5bn ($6.39bn) in loans to finance its bid for French directories business PagesJaunes, as private equity firms ratchet up debt to record levels for acquisitions in Europe.

The €5bn ($6.39bn) loan financing would take the proportion of debt on PagesJaunes' balance sheet to around nine times its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation - one of the highest levels recorded in a European leveraged buyout.