SBS Restructuring To Include Chapter 11
• Spanish Broadcasting System (SBS) announced that on April 3, it entered into a restructuring Support Agreement (RSA) with certain funds and accounts managed by Brigade Capital Management LP, subsidiaries of Man Group plc, and Bayside Capital LLC.
To implement these restructuring transactions, SBS “intends to commence voluntary Chapter 11 cases under the Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware,” adding that “the Company expects to continue operating in the ordinary course throughout the process, including wages and benefits for employees, and making critical vendor payments.”
SBS says that the restructuring process “is expected to strengthen the Company’s balance sheet by significantly reducing debt, lowering interest expense, extending the maturity of the Company’s notes by over four years, and enhancing liquidity, enabling investment in local programming, talent, and broadcast infrastructure, as well as the Company’s LaMusica digital platform and other digital growth vectors. With greater financial flexibility and a simplified capital structure, the Company is expected to be better positioned to expand audience reach, support advertisers, and deliver compelling content across on-air and digital platforms.”
It was concurrently announced that “Raúl Alarcón will continue his leadership of the Company as Chief Executive Officer, and will continue to serve as Chairman of the board of directors through the consummation of the restructuring. It was also announced that Richard D. Lara has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer and will continue to serve as General Counsel, maintaining oversight of the Company’s legal affairs while assuming expanded operational responsibilities.”
