December 17, 2013
Centerbridge Partners to become the majority shareholder in leading French industrial plastics distributor.
Frans Bonhomme, the French leader in the distribution of plastic pipes and connectors, has entered into an agreement in which investment funds advised by Centerbridge Partners, L.P. will become the majority shareholder of the company. Willkie advised Centerbridge Partners and Angelo Gordon in the transaction.
Under the terms of the agreement, there will be a conversion of a substantial part of the debt into shareholders’ equity: 1) Angelo Gordon will become a significant minority shareholder along with Cinven, the historical shareholder, which will retain a minority stake and 2) the group’s debt will be more than halved, at less than €300 million, resulting in a reduction in finance costs and extended maturities.
The Willkie team was led by partners Alexandra Bigot (restructuring) and Cédric Hajage (corporate); and included special European counsel Jeffrey Fouts and associates Laure Pistre, David Lambert and Liza Scemama (corporate); special European counsel Philippe Grudé (tax); partner David Tayar and associate Nicolas Cassauba (antitrust); and national partner Paul Lombard and associate Claire de Bonnières (finance).
