The board of directors of Dell Inc and its group of advisers are now expecting offers from the Blackstone Group LP and activist investor Carl Icahn. Two individuals familiar with the matter confirmed that the two, while expected, have not submitted bids before the set deadline.

The computer maker is not going to confirm receipt of bids until March 25 even if the deadline for the 'go-shop' provision ended last March 23. The current bid standard is the US$24.4 billion leveraged buyout offer from Silver Lake Management LLC. The sources confirmed that the board was in discussion with Blackstone and there is an expectation that the Blackstone offer would be higher than the existing tabled bid. On the other hand, Icahn may have already tendered a proposal even before the deadline expired.

The anonymous source also said that Blackstone's offer may be above the US$13.65 per share offer from Silver Lake and Dell CEO and founder Michael Dell.