Noble amends debt revamp plan as it races to get shareholders’ support

SINGAPORE: Bowing to criticism from the Singapore Exchange (SGX) and other investors, embattled Noble Group is removing a provision in its US$3.4 billion (RM13.2 billion) debt restructuring proposal that penalised shareholders voting against the plan.

The debt-for-equity swap is crucial for the survival of the Singapore-listed company, which has sold billions of dollars of assets, taken hefty writedowns and cut hundreds of jobs over the past three years to slash debt.

Noble has secured the backing of its creditors, but it also needs approval from a majority of its shareholders.

“If more than half of the shareholders vote in favour of the restructuring, all shareholders, irrespective of their vote at the special general meeting, will receive the same treatment and will participate in the restructuring,” chairman Paul Brough said in a letter addressed to shareholders and sent to SGX late on Wednesday.

Last month, SGX’s regulatory unit criticised Noble’s proposal and said shareholders should be able to vote freely and their vote should not have a bearing on whether they are entitled to shares in the restructured company.

Noble is seeking to halve its debt and hand over 70% of the restructured business to creditors, who are mainly made up of hedge funds. Existing shareholders will get 15% equity in the new company.

Once Asia’s largest commodity trader, Noble plunged into crisis in February 2015 when Iceberg Research questioned its books. Noble has stood by its accounting. – Reuters