By: Chandrashekar Bhat
BARCLAYS is leading Asda’s efforts to raise £500 million as the supermarket chain seeks to retire its bridge loan.
The fundraising negotiations come after the proposed sale of Asda’s forecourts business to EG Group, both owned by the Blackburn-based Issa brothers – Mohsin and Zuber Issa – fell through recently.
Now Barclays is seeking to raise senior secured debt for Asda in the form of bonds and loans, Bloomberg reported, citing sources.
The proceeds of the fundraising and a further £262m on Asda’s balance sheet will be used to repay a £750m bridge loan.
Together with TDR Capital, the brothers acquired Asda from American retail giant Walmart in a deal that valued the British supermarket chain at £6.8 billion. The completion of the deal also brought Asda back under British ownership.
Asda recently announced its plans to establish 28 new convenience stores at EG forecourts this year, with a target of 200 by the end of next year and the ambition to roll out more sites in 2023.
