Carlyle, Bain to battle for McDonald's China assets as TPG pulls out

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Carlyle Group LP and Bain Capital LLC are the only major global buyout firms left bidding for McDonald's Corp's restaurants in China and Hong Kong after TPG Capital Management LP [TPG.UL] pulled out, people close to the matter said on Thursday. The two private equity firms, which have partnered with conglomerate CITIC Group Corp [CITIC.UL] and hotelier GreenTree Hospitality respectively, will compete with Chinese bidders for assets worth up to $3 billion, said the people, who declined to be identified because details of the deal are not public. The people did not give a reason for TPG's decision to pull out. Chinese bidders include real estate firm Sanpower Group Co Ltd [SPGCL.UL] and mini-market operator Wumart Stores Inc, Reuters previously reported. Carlyle, Bain and TPG declined to comment. McDonald's did not respond to a Reuters request for comment outside regular U.S. business hours. McDonald's in March said it was reorganizing operations in Asia, bringing in partners as it switches to a less capital-intensive franchise model. It hired Morgan Stanley to run the sale of about 2,400 restaurants in China and Hong Kong. (Reporting by Elzio Barreto and Julie Zhu; Editing by Christopher Cushing)