Buffett to help finance Burger King's acquisition of Tim Hortons -WSJ

Aug 25 (Reuters) - Berkshire Hathaway Inc chairman and CEO, Warren Buffett, is helping finance Burger King Worldwide Inc's take over of Canadian chain Tim Hortons Inc, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Buffett will invest in the merger in the form of preferred shares, the people told the WSJ, adding that Berkshire is expected to provide about 25 percent of the deal's financing. (http://on.wsj.com/VL74SY)

The exact structure of Buffett's participation remains unclear, and discussions are ongoing, the Journal said.

Shares of the Canadian coffee and doughnut chain and U.S. fast-food company Burger King confirmed late on Sunday that they were discussing a merger. Investors and analysts said the deal was spurred in part by Canada's attractive tax policies.

(Reporting by Amrutha Penumudi in Bangalore; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)