Dell reportedly paying $25m to appease disgruntled investor

T. Rowe accepts payment after publicly opposing Dell's $25bn 2013 buyout, according to the Wall Street Journal

At a time when it is trying to raise cash by selling off assets, Dell has reportedly withdrawn $25m (£19m) from its bank account to settle a long-running lawsuit over its 2013 buyout.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Dell has agreed to pay $25m to disgruntled investor T. Rowe, which publicly opposed the $25bn buyout backed by Michael Dell and Silver Lake Partners on the grounds it undervalued the firm.

That figure pales in comparison to the $200m T. Rowe would have netted had it not mistakenly backed the deal in a shareholder vote, by dint of an apparent technical glitch.

A Delaware judge agreed in May that the 2013 leveraged buyout didn't reflect Dell's fair value, but ruled that T. Rowe was ineligible for its share of the spoils due its voting booboo, Forbes reported at the time.

Despite this, Dell has still agreed to pay T. Rowe $25m in exchange for the mutual fund agreeing not to appeal that ruling, the Wall Street Journal said.

T. Rowe had already agreed to compensate its clients to the tune of $194m for the mix-up.

According to the judge, Dell's fair value in a take-private was $17.62 a share, 28 per cent above the $13.75-a-share deal struck by Michael Dell and Silver Lake.

Dell declined to comment.