By Divya Rajagopal
TORONTO (Reuters) – A group of Rogers Communications bond holders have failed to win enough votes to force changes to the company’s proposal to delay redemption of its $9.35 billion bond by a year, two people familiar with the matter said on Monday.
Canadian and U.S. bond holder groups wanted higher fees than the company proposed for accepting the changes and to delay the deadline for acceptance of Rogers’ proposal. They need 50% plus one vote to derail Rogers’ plan and must decide by Wednesday.
Law firm Akin Gump, which was collecting petitions from bond holders for the counterproposal, has not received enough support, said one person aware of the developments who did not wish to be quoted due to the sensitivity of the issue.
“Most bond holders are likely to accept the proposal in its current form,” said a fund manager from a Toronto based investment firm.
The telecom and wireless company last week proposed the extension of its special mandatory redemption notes, due at the end of the year, to December 2023. That would keep funding secure for the completion of its merger with Shaw Communications, which is facing anti-trust hurdles and is expected also to close in January 2023.
The dissenting bond holders wanted more time to consider the proposal and to increase a consent fee offered by the company of $24 to $40 per $1,000 of bonds held..
Rogers and Akin Gump did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
(Reporting by Divya Rajagopal; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
