Line to buy Ford's Aston Martin grows

At least five potential Aston Martin buyers have now whipped out their platinum cards in anticipation of taking the esteemed carmaker off Ford's hands. One London banker said, "The interesting question is whether this is just going to be a scrap between the rich men of Russia and the rich men of the Middle East." It's interesting to note the plethora of former Ford execs hoping to get a piece of Aston.

List of potential bidders after the jump.

[Source: thebusinessonline.com]

Here are the parties currently known to be interested in buying Aston Martin from Ford:

• Aston Matin CEO Ulrich Bez
• JP Morgan Chase's One Equity led by former Ford CEO Jacques Nasser
• Equity group Cerberus Capital headed by David Thursfield, former Ford of Europe head who also once led Ford's PAG.
• British investment firm Magma run by another former CEO of Ford of Europe and current head of LDV (a British cargo van builder) Martin Leach
• Dubai-based investment holding company Istithmar
• French billionaire team Bernard Arnault and Albert Frere