News and Analysis
Jefferies leads financing for KKR’s bid for Simon & Schuster
- Will Caiger-Smith
- +Bill Weisbrod
•1 min read
Jefferies is leading a group of banks and other underwriters to provide debt commitments backing KKR’s bid to acquire Simon & Schuster, according to 9fin sources.
The publishing company’s current owner, Paramount Global, has been searching for a buyer for several months. Bidders have included News Corp and HarperCollins, but news broke last week that the company was set to announce a deal with KKR.
The Jefferies-led debt commitment provides for term loans that will lever the company in the region of 4x-5x, one of the sources said. The underwriter group features multiple Wall Street firms, including KKR’s own capital markets arm.
As is customary for a bank-led financing, the debt is expected to be syndicated to institutional investors. The deal would represent another win for banks, who are competing with direct lenders in order to win lucrative LBO financing mandates.
In just the past two weeks, several large buyout financings have been snapped up by private credit firms, including deals for Nextech, New Relic and Worldwide Clinical Trials.
KKR declined to comment. Jefferies and Paramount Global did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.
