Americanas reportedly sought to renegotiate debt before accounting scandal

Scandal-hit retail giant Americanas reportedly hired investment bank BTG Pactual to renegotiate two debenture issues well before it reported the BRL 20 billion (USD 3.8 billion) “accounting inconsistencies” that led the company to file for bankruptcy protection last month. 

According to news site Capital Reset, which reported this attempted renegotiation, the debt in question was the 14th and 15th debenture issues, launched in 2020 and maturing in May and June 2023, totaling a debt of BRL 1 billion. 

The two issues contained covenant clauses according to which the company could not exceed a debt ratio (net debt vs. Ebitda) of 3.5. If its financial leverage crossed this threshold, the debt would mature early and have to be paid.

The debenture holders were supposedly contacted in December of last year, while the accounting error was reported in January.

If confirmed, the move may indicate that not only were the executives who ran the company for decades fully aware of the problems that later emerged, but that there was even an attempt to do damage control before the scandal came to light.

BTG Pactual did not comment on Capital Reset’s report. 

Americanas issued a statement which neither confirmed nor denied the reported debenture renegotiation, but instead stressed efforts to get the company back on track, including the creation of an independent committee “to investigate the facts.” The company also said that it is fully collaborating with internal and external investigations by Brazil’s Securities Commission (CVM) and other authorities.

The company has over 9,700 creditors — companies and people to whom it owes BRL 42.5 billion (USD 8.18 billion).

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