INM to extend standstill agreement once again

Independent News & Media is looking to extend its financial standstill agreement for another month as its €200 million bond is set to expire once again.

The bond, which is due for repayment this Friday, is likely to be extended again as stakeholders attempt to finalise details of a proposed debt for equity swap, according to reports.

If the proposal is accepted, bondholders will be issued with new shares as part-payment for their debt, which will impact on INM’s two principal shareholders, Anthony O’Reilly and Denis O’Brien.

The former chief executive O’Reilly, who is the controlling shareholder, would have his 30% stake halved, while O’Brien’s share would be reduced to 13%.

The news comes just days after O’Brien claimed the publishing group’s flagship newspaper The Independent will be closed by the end of the year.

Speaking at the Global Economic Forum in Dublin, O’Brien said: “There’s no point in us as a company subsidising a newspaper that really nobody wants to read in the United Kingdom. It’s not a relevant newspaper any more and this newspaper’s going to be closed at Christmas.”

O’Brien and O’Reilly have been disagreeing about the future of the Independent titles and the company’s debt restructuring for some time.

In response to O’Brien’s comments about the Independent, INM said: “Denis O’Brien has made clear his hostility. But this is his most outspoken criticism yet and it does nothing to motivate the staff who work at the newspaper.”