American billionaire Tom Perkins, who made his fortune in California's Silicon Valley, has told the London Times newspaper that he has found a buyer for his super yacht, the Maltese Falcon.

The reported price tag is 60 million British pounds ($120 million and the current exchange rate) -- about $60 million less than the price Perkins was originally asking for the giant, three-masted vessel.

"It has taken a while," The Times quotes Perkins as saying, "It is not the best time in the world to sell it. I can't tell you anything at all about the buyer. There is confidentiality."

Perkins had the 289 foot yacht built in Turkey three years ago and had it fitted with every luxury -- including a two-man mini submarine that can dive to 1500 feet.

The most remarkable aspect of the yacht are the masts and sails. The yacht is a modern update on the historic square rigger and the sails deploy from the cross booms on the towering carbon fibre masts at the touch of a button.

The yacht is computer controlled and can be operated by one person at the helm.

Under sail the yacht can cruise at more than 18 knots and it has a range of more than 3000 nautical miles from its engines.

Perkins, who told the US television show 60 Minutes that the yacht cost him somewhere between $US150 million and $US 300 million to build, said the driving force was to "recapture the grandeur of the clipper ships and bring them into this century".

Last year Perkins put the yacht on the charter market. It cost a mere $US550,000 a week.