Report: Microsoft in stealth Yahoo takeover?

Techcrunch, quoting anonymous sources, is reporting that a group of Silicon Valley executives and investment bankers are proposing a takeover of Yahoo - with the help of financing from Microsoft.

The proposal calls for a premium of about 20 percent over Yahoo's current share price, which closed at $12.71 Tuesday, down 2 percent. Shares continued to slide in after-hours trading. The Silicon Valley group would immediately sell Yahoo's search and marketing businesses to Microsoft and take over the top ranks of Yahoo, leaving the companiy as an independent, the site reported.

It's important to note that this is simply a proposal to Microsoft at this point and that it needs backing from Redmond to fly.

Previous coverage: The time is now for a Microsoft-Yahoo search deal