At least three major Asian retailers are mulling bids for control of the Big C businesses in Thailand and Vietnam.

But they all start as rank outsiders behind Thailand’s Central Group, which already has a 25 per cent share of the Thai Big C business.

In a surprise move, France’s Casino group announced earlier this month it would sell its 58.6 per cent stake in the Thai hypermarket business in a bid to reduce debt. It had already put its struggling Vietnam business on the market in December.

Reuters reports Hong Kong headquartered Dairy Farm International and Korea’s Lotte are in talks with their bankers about potential bids. Japan’s Aeon is also running the numbers.

But as Reuters says, all three would need “punchy bids” to fight off frontrunner, Thailand’s Central Group.

Casino Group will sell both businesses in an auction process – and has indicated it would prefer to sell the two operations to a single buyer.

With a cornerstone stake in the Big C operation, Central would have to be frontrunner to secure Casino Group’s share. The company has already publicly declared its interest.

“Whoever is going to buy this will have to pay a high price to get Central out or they will have to co-exist,” Reuters quoted an unnamed banking source “familiar with the matter”.

The Thai stake is estimated to be worth about US$3.1 billion. The value of the Vietnam operation is less clear – bankers put it at between $800 million and $1 billion, although the business is not thought to be particularly profitable, despite recent media commentary to the contrary.

Aeon, Lotte and Dairy Farm all declined to comment on the matter.