The outcome for the takeover of Morrisons is to be decided in one day, as the supermarket chain confirms that the battle will be moved to an auction this weekend.
The sale will see the Big Four grocer exchange hands in the biggest shake-up since its acquisition of Safeway in 2004, The Mirror reports.
The stock market's takeover panel for the supermarket must now be submitted, with the initial round of bidding taking place this Saturday and the results revealed on Monday.
US private equity firms Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) and Fortress Investment Group will be going against one another in a battle to bid over the UK supermarket chain this Saturday, October 2.
The two US firms have both been bidding to buy the supermarket chain for quite some time, as each firm have made an offer that has not yet been currently finalised.
CD&R were the first company to make a deal as they approached Morrisons back in June.
Fortress then made an offer of £6.3billion in July before increasing that to £6.7billion in August.
However, CD&R later returned with an even higher bid of £7billion, leading the Morrisons board to pledge their support for the higher offer.
As neither bid has been finalised, an auction will now take place where either party can increase their bids.
Both sides have agreed to a fixed cash price and they cannot include stakes in other businesses.
The Takeover Panel said: “On the basis that neither offeror has declared its offer final, such that either offer may be increased or otherwise revised, a competitive situation continues to exist.”
If no bids are made, there will be a further three rounds of bidding where either firm can make an offer only if one side increased their bid in the previous round.
Following the bidding this weekend, the Morrisons board must make a recommendation for one of the two firms by Tuesday, October 5, and it has been reported that they are currently considering the higher offer by CD&R.
What would a sale mean for Morrisons stores?
As the chains new owner is yet to be announced, there is no official confirmation on what will happen to current staff and stores after a takeover, however, CD&R has said that store closures are not on the horizon.
Most supermarkets lease their sites to boost their income, but Morrisons has always resisted calls to use sale and leaseback agreements to generate profits.
CD&R said it "will support Morrisons in further building on these strengths" and suggested it had no plans to sell off its freehold stores.
But experts have warned Morrisons might have to be broken up if it is sold.
City analysts Bernstein said the new owners would need to sell off part of the supermarket to reclaim some cash.
Bernstein said buyers would struggle to make a profit "without significant asset sales”.
As well as the supermarkets themselves, Morrisons owns petrol stations, food factories and depots.
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