He French Casino distribution group closed a binding agreement with its main creditors on the restructuring of its debta long-awaited stage for his future, he announced this Thursday.
Casino closed 2022 with a debt of 6.4 billion euros (US$ 6.83 billion at the current exchange rate) and, to reduce it, it also plans to sell its activities in South America.
Czech businessmen Daniel Kretinsky and French Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière, together with the British fund Attestor, presented a debt restructuring offer.
The buyers plan to contribute 1,200 million euros (US$ 1,260 million) and reduce the group’s debt by almost 5,000 million euros (US$ 5,257 million).
They also plan to sell off activities in South America, such as Grupo Éxito in Colombia and Grupo Pão de Açúcar in Brazil. Three quarters of its 200,000 employees around the world work in that area.
But this offer needed the approval of Casino’s creditors on the modalities of debt renegotiation, especially when for some this implies financial losses.
In a statement, the group announced “a lock-up agreement relating to its financial restructuring” with the buyers and with an important part of its main secured creditors.
The deadline for the ongoing conciliation process expires on October 25. Casino expects to complete its debt restructuring in the first quarter of 2024.
Source: Gestion
Ricardo is a renowned author and journalist, known for his exceptional writing on top-news stories. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he is known for his ability to deliver breaking news and insightful analysis on the most pressing issues of the day.
