Altice France and SFR are preparing to enter into accelerated safeguard proceedings

The telecommunications group Altice France, parent company of the operator SFR and owned by billionaire Patrick Drahi , is preparing to enter into accelerated safeguard proceedings, a step planned since the restructuring plan for its debt, a source close to the case told AFP on Wednesday, May 21, confirming information from BFMTV .

"As we announced at the end of February, to ratify the debt agreement, we must put in place a legal-administrative process, which includes accelerated safeguarding before the Paris commercial court," this source said.

This step corresponds to the end of the conciliation phase with creditors holding Altice's debt , which has resulted in the agreement of more than 90% of them. The procedure should allow the agreement reached to be finalized by the end of September or the beginning of October, the same source indicated.

Patrick Drahi's heavily indebted group (nearly €24 billion in the third quarter of 2024) announced at the end of February that it had reached an agreement with a majority of its creditors to reduce its debt by €8.6 billion. The agreement provides for a total reduction to €15.5 billion, in exchange for a 45% stake in its capital. Among the other considerations agreed, the company plans to pay €1.6 billion in cash.

The group "is focused on implementing the debt agreement, considering the sale of non-core assets and continuing the commercial revival of SFR and improving the quality of service, two indicators already well underway as evidenced by the Q1 results," he reaffirmed to AFP on Wednesday. According to information from Bloomberg published on Monday, Altice France has entered into discussions with several operators, both French and foreign, for the sale of SFR, valued at 30 billion euros.

The group, which has not been listed on the stock market since 2021, has been struggling for several years, particularly due to its debt burden and the corruption scandal involving the former head of its Portuguese subsidiary and co-founder of the group. Altice France has already been on a financial downsizing program for a year to ease its debt burden. It has sold its media business, which included BFM and RMC, its data centers, and its shares in La Poste Mobile, while the Altice group's other subsidiaries abroad have also been divesting assets.