Low bids derail trainline.com sale The sale of thetrainline.com has been pulled after the company's private equity owner failed to achieve the £400m price-tag it had been hoping for. Exponent, which owns the train ticket sales website, is believed to have formally ended the process after bids failed to meet price expectations. This comes in spite of a five-month process, led by investment bank Rothschild, which saw 10 trade and private equity bidders initially show interest. In the second round of bidding, Francisco Partners of the US, private equity group KKR, which owns stakes in Alliance Boots and Pets at Home, and an unidentified trade bidder remained in the running. The highest bid in the second round is believed to have been in the range of £250m. However sources indicated that the bids "didn't reflect shareholders" view of thetrainline's future growth prospects." One source outside the process suggested the sale had ended following the loss of a contract with a major train operating company, damaging future profits. But a source close to the company said that due to the number of contracts with train companies and other travel groups, loss of one could not overly damage profits. In the year to February 2012, sales are believed to have increased by 15pc to £1.3bn. The business generated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of £32.4m in the year to February 2011. Thetrainline.com, founded by Virgin in 1999 as an offshoot of Virgin Trains, was bought by Exponent from the Sir Richard Branson-led conglomerate for £163m in July 2006. Rothschild is understood to have been retained, suggesting Exponent hopes to revive the process in the future.