Atos woes continue as consortium backs out of discussions

The consortium comprising Onepoint, Butler Industries, and Econocom has ceased discussions regarding its financial restructuring with French outsourcing giant Atos.

On 12 June, Atos agreed to a consortium proposal to transform €2.9 billion of its debt into company equity.

Atos has also received an updated financial restructuring plan from its bondholders’ representative committee, SteerCo. The company is currently negotiating with SteerCo and select banks to finalise an agreement immediately.

Atos has warned that the proposed financial restructuring would significantly diluent current shareholders, leaving them with less than 0.1% of the share capital.

In a parallel development, Atos has concluded an arrangement with the French State to safeguard national interests in key operations conducted by the group.

This accord gives the French State governance rights and options to acquire certain sensitive activities.

Despite these hurdles, Atos has affirmed that its operational activities remain consistent with the strategy unveiled on 29 April 2024.

The company has also acknowledged receipt of correspondence from EPEI, indicating its desire to partake in the financial restructuring process.

Atos intends to secure a comprehensive financial restructuring agreement with most of its financial creditors in the week commencing 22 July 2024.

The company is optimistic about reaching a preliminary agreement this week, which will be succeeded by a new money backstop procedure and the execution of a lock-up agreement in early July.

As events progress, stakeholders keenly observe Atos’s manoeuvres to overcome fiscal obstacles and ensure longevity in the fiercely competitive IT services sector.