Policyband

Debt-Plagued ISP Optimum Close to Handing the Keys to Lenders, Resolving Litigation

The fifth-largest U.S. wireline ISP will turn over control to Apollo, Oaktree, and JPMorgan Chase

Ted Hearn

Ted Hearn

— 9 min read
Debt-Plagued ISP Optimum Close to Handing the Keys to Lenders, Resolving Litigation
Photo of Patrick Drahi, founder of global telecom firm Altice, and Dexter Goei, former CEO of Altice USA, outside the New York Stock Exchange in 2017
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Debt: Highly leverage Optimum Communications is close to a debt restructuring deal that would hand control of the nation’s fifth‑largest wireline broadband provider to its lenders, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the talks. The proposed transaction would transfer equity to lenders including Apollo Global Management, Oaktree Capital Management, and JPMorgan Chase, and it would also settle litigation. The people said controlling shareholder Patrick Drahi has been negotiating how his stake would be treated in the restructured company, and that “the gap between what he was demanding and what creditors were willing to give him has shrunk recently.” They added that the treatment of preferred shareholders, including Drahi, remains central to reaching a mutual agreement, Bloomberg reported. (More after paywall)

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