The two subsequent groups by the supermarket chain that controls the French organization Casino –3F, made up of banker Matthieu Pigasse, telecommunications billionaire Xavier Niel and retailer Moez-Alexandre Zouariand a rival made up of the Czech investor Daniel Kretinsky and Fimalac de Marc Ladreit de Lacharriere- have until tomorrow, Friday, to improve their bets on said organization, which is looking for a way out to reduce its high indebtedness through the sale of some assets.
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As you remember, Said group of businessmen presented their business plans on Tuesday to a French government committee that oversees business restructuring.. Now they have until this Friday to present an improvement to the financial proposals that would alleviate the high financial burden of Casino, according to information from sources consulted by Bloomberg, who asked not to be identified because the matter is confidential.
The same agency authorized that representatives of Casino and 3F declined to comment, while Kretinsky’s spokesman did not respond to a request for comment on that particular situation.
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Both offers and those of others that have not come to light up to now would be the lifeline that would prevent the collapse of the Casino, harassed by the million-dollar debts that it brings back for a long time.
Indeed, the company is looking to 2018 reduce lending through asset sales, but its focus on areas heavily dependent on tourism backfired during the pandemic and a strategy to raise prices more than its competitors added to the organization’s problems, points out the Bloomberg note.
Xavier Niel, Moez-Alexandre Zouari and Matthieu Pigasse, a group of millionaire businessmen interested in the rescue or acquisition of the French Casino.
According to the agency, Casino is in a permanent struggle to generate enough cash, without so far achieving enough to balance their situation.
In May, the note notes, Casino management began court-supervised talks with its creditors and other interested parties, including the French state, to restructure its balance sheet.
The proposals would involve new equity investments by the two bidders and others and the conversion of a significant part of the company’s debt into equity.
With the proposals presented so far the current shareholders of Casino would see their participation in the supermarket organization reduced significantly until they were left with almost nothing, while Casino Chairman and CEO Jean-Charles Naouri would lose his majority stake.
While new stakeholder proposals are being defined and known, Casino continues a business plan designed around its smaller premium supermarkets in Paris and Lyon city centers and on the Côte d’Azur.
Although it maintains its cash-holding hypermarket operations in France, the news agency warns, the group plans to sell assets such as its business in Latin America. In addition to liquidity pressures, the company is getting reduced financing from suppliers, ratings agency Moody’s said this week.
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said in parliament on Tuesday this week that both offers to recapitalize a casino were sound, but that it is not the state’s role to choose either.
