Sony Corp has secured financing from Abu Dhabi's investment fund for its bid for British music company EMI, the Financial Times reported, citing people close to the auction.

Sony now has backing from Mubadala, the Abu Dhabi fund, and investment bank Raine, to better compete with other bidders that include Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, the paper said.

Sony declined to comment. Citigroup is seeking $3 billion to $3.5 billion for EMI, home to artists such as the Beatles and Coldplay, but it may have to split the company in two, sources have told Reuters.

The second round of bids were due on Wednesday, and the tightening credit market is handing the advantage to strategic buyers like Warner Music, Universal Music and Sony/ATV, over private equity firms.

Sony/ATV, a joint venture between Sony and the estate of Michael Jackson, is bidding against BMG Music Rights for EMI Publishing, which holds the rights to more than 1.3 million songs. BMG is the joint venture between Germany's Bertelsmann and private equity group KKR.

Vivendi's Universal Music Group and Ron Perelman's MacAndrew & Forbes are interested in EMI's recorded music business, which includes record labels Capitol and Virgin, sources said. - Reuters