Revlon Distressed Exchange Fails, Looks for New Way to Remain Solvent

The first sign that Revlon, Inc. (NYSE: REV) was becoming a distressed asset occurred in May.

A loan repayment looming on the horizon, and the company opted to refinance $1.8 billion in debt. Several shareholders contended the refinance, but it was ultimately successful.

In July, more cracks began to show. Revlon offered a bond exchange that Moody’s categorized as distressed: Revlon offered bondholders $750, plus a $50 participation fee for each $1,000 in bonds they exchanged. If the exchange had been successful, it would have postponed the maturity date from 2021 to 2024.

But the bond exchange needed 95% participation to take place. And only 5.1% of bondholders were interested, according to Yahoo finance.

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