Optimum Nears Restructuring Deal to Hand Keys to Creditors
Optimum Communications Inc. is closing in on a restructuring agreement with its lenders that will hand them control of the telecom provider and resolve litigation, according to people familiar with the matter.
Controlling shareholder Patrick Drahi and the lenders, which include Apollo Global Management Inc., Oaktree Capital Management and JPMorgan Chase & Co., have been negotiating how to deal with his equity stake in the restructured company. But the gap between what he was demanding and what creditors were willing to give him has shrunk recently, the people familiar said, asking not to be identified discussing private information.
Read More: Drahi, Optimum Lenders Clash Over Equity Split in Restructuring
The treatment of preferred shareholders, including Drahi, will be key to agree on a consensual deal, the people added. An agreement could be completed before the end of November, but talks are still ongoing, they added.
Representatives for Optimum, Apollo, Oaktree and JPMorgan declined to comment. The Wall Street Journal earlier reported the advance in negotiations.
Optimum’s long-running bid to restructure its debt stack has gone through a number of twists and turns. The company late last year accused its lenders of antitrust behavior for signing a cooperation agreement to stick together in negotiations with the company, allegedly blocking it from access to capital markets.
The tension increased in June, when Optimum told creditors they risked triggering more than $4 billion of tax liabilities, a potential massive blow to their recoveries, if they forced it into bankruptcy.
Last month, creditors sued the company demanding it unwind transfers they claim siphoned value out of their reach and into the pockets of insiders, including Drahi, who has an estimated net worth of $6.7 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Drahi owns about 28% of Class A shares in Optimum, formerly known as Altice USA. He also has 99.9% of the Class B shares, giving him about 90.5% of voting power, according to regulatory filings.
Optimum shares tumbled as much as 30% on Wednesday, and were trading down about 18% at 68 cents as of 1:37 p.m. in New York.