Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky has proposed a capital increase at Groupe Casino to which it would subscribe under a plan that could lead to a change of control at the retailer, it said on Monday.
Casino has around €3 billion of debt maturing between 2024 and 2025.
Currently it is in exclusive talks to combine its French retail business with Teract, as it seeks to reassure investors over its ability to generate cash and reduce debt.
Read More: Casino, Teract Expand Tie Up Talks To Intermarché Owner
Kretinsky Proposal
EP Global Commerce a.s, a Czech company controlled by Kretinsky, proposed to subscribe to capital increases at Casino worth an aggregate €1.1 billion.
The company is already Casino's second largest shareholder with a stake of 10.06%.
'Acknowledged The Proposal'
"At this stage, Casino Group has acknowledged the proposal," Casino said in a statement.
"If it were to respond positively to this proposal, the implementation of the transactions proposed by EP Global Commerce a.s. could, depending on the financial parameters ultimately agreed between the parties, lead to a change of control of Casino and to a dilution which might be very significant for existing shareholders," it said.
EP Global Commerce proposed to subscribe to a reserved capital increase of up to €750 million in Casino's share capital.
It offered Fimalac, Casino's third largest shareholder, the opportunity to subscribe to a reserved capital increase of up to €150 million.
A capital increase of up to €200 million with preferential subscription rights would also be offered to Casino’s other existing shareholders.
Read More: Casino Bonds Hit Distressed Levels Amid Increased Refinancing Risks
News by Reuters, additional reporting by ESM – your source for the latest retail news. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
