Offer for Affiliated Computer dies

Private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management has withdrawn its $6.1-billion takeover offer for Affiliated Computer Services Inc., citing poor debt market conditions, according to a regulatory filing Wednesday.

Cerberus said in a letter to the special committee of the Affiliated board involved with the offer that it might consider another deal for the company if market conditions changed.

The buyout group, which included Affiliated Computer Chairman Darwin Deason, cited debt market conditions as among the reasons for pulling the bid.

Investors had expected the withdrawal for months because the deal was announced a few months before the credit crunch paralyzed the private equity industry. In addition, the board of Affiliated tried to open up an auction for the Dallas-based company -- an effort that was undercut by the credit crunch.

Affiliated has seen its shares drop steadily since the Cerberus-Deason group made its offer in March, raising it a month later to $62 a share. The shares, which have traded at around $50 since August, fell 19 cents to $50.66 on Wednesday.