The Vice Media Group on Monday filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States and struck a deal to sell itself to a group of its lenders
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th May, 2023) The Vice Media Group on Monday filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States and struck a deal to sell itself to a group of its lenders.
The company, popular with websites such as Vice and Motherboard, has struggled for years to generate profits. It was estimated to worth $5.7 billion in 2017.
"VICE Media Group today announced that it has agreed to the terms of an asset purchase agreement ('APA') with a consortium of its lenders (the 'Lender Consortium'), pursuant to which the Lender Consortium has agreed to purchase the Company, subject to higher and better bids from other parties and to the terms of the APA. The Lender Consortium includes Fortress Investment Group, Soros Fund Management and Monroe Capital, and has agreed to provide total purchase consideration of approximately $225 million in the form of a credit bid for substantially all of the Company's assets, in addition to the assumption of significant liabilities upon closing," the company said in a statement.
It added that Vice has filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11 in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York and is waiting for approval of the proposed transaction under Section 363 of the same chapter, which allows for outside parties to submit higher bids for the company.
The Lender Consortium has also committed to providing debtor-in-possession financing and allowed Vice to use more than $20 million in cash to ensure continued operations throughout the sale process, which is expected to conclude in the next two to three months, the statement added.
Vice said that its multiplatform brands such as Vice news, Vice tv, Vice Studios, Pulse Films, Virtue, Refinery29 and i-D, will continue to operate and further produce content.
