The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals involving European, U.S., Canadian and Asian companies were reported by 1000 GMT on Thursday:

 ** Companies linked to a Thai billionaire agreed to pay S$3.8 billion ($3.02 billion) for stakes in conglomerate Fraser and Neave and an affiliated beermaker from Singapore's No.2 bank, OCBC, putting pressure on Heineken to protect its investment in the maker of the popular Tiger beer.

** Private equity firm BC Partners and one of Canada's top pension funds are joining forces with the management of Suddenlink Communications to buy out the U.S. cable operator in a cash and debt deal worth roughly $2.5 billion.

** Hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management told investors this week that it recently sold its position in Citigroup and used that money to buy shares of Procter & Gamble.

** The Polish government has raised 3.1 billion zlotys ($913 million) from the sale of a 7.6-percent stake in its top lender PKO, drawing interest three times higher than the number of shares offered.

** Shares in troubled Danish shipping firm Torm surged more than 60 percent on Thursday after a newspaper said the company is close to reaching a deal with banks on its $1.9 billion of debt.

** Danish luxury electronics maker Bang & Olufsen aims to boost growth in China through a strategic partnership, to help offset weak western markets, and will raise 177 million crowns ($29.2 million) in a share issue to its two new partners.

** Chevron Corp is buying into blocks in Iraq's Kurdistan, according to two oil executives involved in the region, as the second-largest U.S. oil company follows Exxon Mobil Corp XOM.N into an area where oil rights are a subject of fierce dispute.

** Lloyds Banking Group has agreed to sell 632 branches to the Co-operative, a deal mandated by regulators in an effort to boost competition in British banking while preventing Lloyds from benefiting unfairly from its state bailout four years ago.

This article is copyrighted by Reuters