BlackBerry Co-Founders Mike Lazaridis And Douglas Fregin Consider Buying Back The Company

We already know that BlackBerry is considering a sale, with a $4.7 billion dollar bid already having been made. Looks like two other guys might be interested, though: its co-founders, Mike Lazaridis and Douglas Fregin.

Though Lazaridis is a bit more well known and oft credited as the sole founder of BlackBerry, he and Fregin co-founded the company as Research In Motion back in 1984. Fregin acted as the company’s VP of Operations until he retired in 2007; Lazaridis, meanwhile, left his role as Vice Chair of BlackBerry’s board in May, about a year and a half after stepping down as CEO.

The pair have filed a 13D with the SEC, disclosing their interest in taking over the company they started. Here’s the nut of it:

In light of the Issuer’s recent announcement that its board of directors has formed a Special Committee to explore strategic alternatives to enhance value and increase scale, the Reporting Persons are considering all available options with respect to their holdings of the Shares, including, without limitation, a potential acquisition of all the outstanding Shares of the Issuer that they do not currently own, either by themselves or with other interested investors (an “Acquisition”).

Combining their own personal shares, those managed by their corporations, and those held in myriad family trusts, Lazaridis and Fregin already own at least 8% of the company.

It’s important to note that this doesn’t necessarily mean they have a concrete intent to acquire the company — just that they’re considering it. According to the filing, they’ve brought in Goldman Sachs and Centerview Partners LLC to help them weigh their options.

[Photo Credit: textlad on flickr]