The Paris Commercial Court decided on Tuesday to postpone for two years the deadlines of the safeguard plan rescheduling the debt of Rallye, the parent company of distributor Casino in serious financial difficulties.
Rallye and its holdings Foncière Euris, Finatis and Euris announced the court decision on Wednesday, which postpones the next deadline for repayment of their debts to 2024.
Developed with the help of court administrators, the safeguard plans for the four companies were approved at the beginning of March 2020, two weeks before the first confinement.
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"
This request for postponement of deadlines and the corresponding extension of the safeguard plans is part of the exceptional government measures put in place during the Covid-19 crisis
," the companies said in a
press
release.
The safeguard plans provided for the settlement of debts accumulated over a period of ten years, until 2030, for a total amount of more than 3 billion euros.
The indebtedness of Rallye and its holding companies is shared between secured claims with collateral on Casino securities - a guarantee that will allow creditors to recover securities as compensation, to be reimbursed in the event of default - secured claims with collateral on other Rallye subsidiaries, and unsecured debts.
Rallye and its holding companies have already reimbursed 100,000 euros in 2021 to their creditors, and were to do the same in 2022. But the court decision cancels this obligation, and postpones it to 2024. On that date, the safeguard plans will resume their course. almost the same way as expected, but with a two-year lag.
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Another major deadline was scheduled for 2023 on secured debts relating to Casino securities: it is finally postponed to 2025. The financing of 210 million euros obtained by Rallye from the investment company Fimalac, belonging to the man Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière's business, is also extended for one year.
Rallye, whose majority shareholder is businessman Jean-Charles Naouri, reduced the amount of its unsecured debt by around 156.6 million euros last May, following an offer public purchase.