(Bloomberg) -- EQT AB is nearing a deal to buy a minority stake in Flix SE in a transaction valuing the German bus and train operator at about €3 billion ($3.2 billion), people familiar with the matter said, adding to the recent revival in private equity dealmaking. 

The Stockholm-listed buyout firm is in advanced talks to acquire about a 30% stake for roughly €900 million in Flix, which also owns North American bus service Greyhound, said the people. EQT is looking to get a 10% stake through subscribing for new shares, while buying the remainder from some existing shareholders, the people said. 

Flix’s founders are likely to keep their stakes, they added. An announcement could come as soon as this week, according to the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is private. 

Deliberations are ongoing and there’s no certainty they will lead to a transaction. Flix has been considering an initial public offering, potentially in the US, as a backup plan if a stake sale doesn’t materialize, the people said. A representative for EQT declined to comment, while a spokesperson for Flix didn’t immediately respond to queries. 

Private equity firms clinched more than $30 billion of deals around the world last week, raising hopes for a revival in mergers and acquisitions following a slow first half of the year. EQT alone announced at least three deals in June including a sale of a majority stake in European online real estate platform Idealista and an acquisition of a majority stake in Belgium-based software provider CluePoints.

Flix operates bus and train services in Europe and North America under its brands FlixBus, FlixTrain, Greyhound and Kamil Koç, according to its website. It runs Europe’s largest long-distance bus network and employs about 3,000 people at over 20 locations.

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