British transport group Arriva has received a takeover bid from German company Deutsche Bahn (DB) in an all-cash offer.
A deal would value Arriva at £1.2bn ($1.8bn).
Deutsche Bahn, keen on expanding its business in the European market, could pay up to €2bn ($2.7bn) for Arriva, according to expatica.com.
Germany's national rail company already operates UK services including the Chiltern Railways route between London and Birmingham.
Arriva, with market capitalisation standing at £1.16bn ($1.7bn) runs buses, rail franchises and other services in 12 European countries.
The UK firm increased its order book in mainland Europe by €1.6bn ($2.1bn) to €7bn ($9.5bn) in 2009, and won €1.2bn ($1.6bn) of orders in 2010.
