A fortnight after revealing it had won a deal from its Australian bankers by dropping its final dividend for 2020, Tabcorp’s offshore bondholders controlling $2.1 billion of debt, have done a similar deal.
Tabcorp said in a filing with the ASX on Thursday that the bondholders had agreed to waive the testing of debt covenants through to the end of 2020, letting the wagering giant off the hook after the coronavirus saw a virtual halt to cash flows.
Two weeks ago Tabcorp lenders representing $2.2 billion of loan facilities agreed to waive debt covenants on the condition the company suspended its final dividend for the 2019-20 year.
On Thursday, Tabcorp said its US Private Placement noteholders (representing fully hedged debt equivalent to $2.1 billion) had agreed to waive interest cover covenant and to adjust its leverage covenant ratios for the next two testing dates, being June 30 and December 31, 2020.
“Following on from the support of our syndicate banks, we now welcome the support of our US noteholders for the financial flexibility they have afforded us in managing the uncertainty created by COVID-19,” Tabcorp CEO David Attenborough said in a statement.
The shares closed unchanged at $3.45, down nearly 24% for the year to date.
