Icahn Raises Purchase Price for CIT Notes to $650

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investor Carl Icahn on Friday raised his offer for the senior notes of bankrupt CIT Group to $650 per $1,000 of principal notes tendered.

The tender offer is open until 11:59 PM, EST, December 2, Icahn said in a press release.

A U.S. bankruptcy judge has set a December 8 hearing to consider approval of CIT's reorganization plan, which would aid the large commercial lender's effort to emerge from bankruptcy by the end of the year.

CIT filed for Chapter 11 protection earlier this month, making it one of the five largest bankruptcies in U.S. history, to reduce $10 billion of debt following a failed debt exchange offer.

The filing came after CIT gathered support from most of its bondholders to restructure, along with a $1 billion financing commitment from Icahn.

It is unclear why Icahn raised his offer. A spokeswoman for the investor, who has made his name as a dissident shareholder in companies from Yahoo Inc to Time Warner Inc , was not immediately available for comment.

(Reporting by Robert MacMillan; editing by Carol Bishopric)

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