* Bain Capital to buy Atento in 1 billion euro deal
* Enterprise value includes 110 mln euro deferred payment
* Telefonica to provide 110 mln euros in vendor financing
* Telefonica shares up 0.4 percent
(Adds details and analyst comment)
By Tracy Rucinski
MADRID, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Spain's Telefonica hasclinched a 1 billion euro ($1.3 billion) deal to sell its Atentocall centre business to U.S. private equity firm Bain Capital aspart of a drive to cut debt.
The telecoms group is trying to raise funds to reduce a 57billion euro debt pile and preserve a coveted investment gradecredit rating, at a time when its crisis-hit home country facespressure to seek an international bailout.
The deal includes a 110-million-euro deferred payment byBain, which was co-founded by U.S. Republican presidentialcandidate Mitt Romney, as well as 110 million euros in financingprovided by Telefonica, the Spanish group said on Friday.
Telefonica has been looking for a buyer of Spanish-basedAtento ever since it shelved a stock market listing of the unit,which has over 152,000 employees, last year after failing tofetch enough interest.
"The enterprise value is close to Telefonica's initialambition for Atento and is 30 percent better than the pricesthat had been rumoured in the press recently," Juan Rodriguez,an analyst at Banco Sabadell said.
Shares in Telefonica were up 0.4 percent by 0820 GMT, inline with gains on Spain's blue chip index .
The company is also preparing to spin off its German O2subsidiary and has said it is considering listings in LatinAmerica. It needs to raise between 7 billion and 8 billion eurosa year through 2015 to cope with debt repayments.
Telefonica expects to close the Atento sale, which issubject to regulatory approval, before the end of the year. Thedeal also includes a nine-year agreement for the call centre tocontinue providing services to Telefonica.
Atento had 1.8 billion euros in 2011 revenue. It is theleading customer relationship management company in LatinAmerica and the second largest in the world, according toTelefonica.
Bain has owned Japan's biggest call centre operatorBellsystems24 since 2009 and recently invested in Genpact, theworld's largest business processing outsourcer.
($1 = 0.7726 euros)
(Reporting By Tracy Rucinski; Editing by Hans-Juergen Petersand Mark Potter)
((tracy.rucinski@thomsonreuters.com)(+34 91 585 2153)(ReutersMessaging: tracy.rucinski.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
Keywords: TELEFONICA ATENTO/