Bidding process (Bieterverfahren)

Once more than one serious prospect emerges, the administrator typically turns individual talks into a bidding process: a teaser and NDA go out to a wider circle, followed by data-room access, a first round of non-binding indicative offers (letter of intent), shortlisting of the most promising bidders, deeper due diligence, and finally a second round of binding offers from which the administrator awards the deal.

The administrator has no formal statutory duty to run a bidding process, but doing so supports their legal obligation to realise the best possible proceeds in creditors' interest (§ 1 InsO) — a documented competition among several offers also protects them against the charge of having sold the estate too cheaply. In larger cases, the creditors' committee typically approves both the chosen process and the final award.

For buyers, a bidding process means real competitive pressure: a fast, credible indicative offer backed by clear proof of financing earns preferential access to the second round. Buyers who only react once others are already bidding bindingly have little chance left in practice — speed is its own competitive factor alongside price.