2023-07-28 01:06:45
The Casino group unveiled, Thursday, July 27, a net loss of 2.23 billion euros in the first half. STEPHANE MAHE / REUTERS
The Casino group remains in the dark. No announcement was made, Thursday July 27 evening at midnight, after the negotiations held around the French distributor (Monoprix, Franprix, Naturalia, CDiscount, etc.) to find an agreement on the restructuring of its debt and its takeover by the Czech billionaire. Daniel Kretinsky (indirect shareholder of Monde) and businessman Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière.
Casino had set a date for Thursday to find an agreement in principle with its creditors, who must decide on the offer presented by the tandem and give their approval. The survival of the distribution giant with 200,000 employees worldwide, including a quarter in France, depends on this agreement. During a telephone press briefing on Thursday morning, Casino’s financial director, David Lubek, reaffirmed this objective, saying to himself ” confident “ Insofar as “there is a common interest” to do it.
Casino had given its authorization on July 18 to the recapitalization and debt restructuring offer presented by billionaires Daniel Kretinsky and Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière, backed by the British investment fund Attestor. This offer provides in particular for the contribution of 1.2 billion euros in fresh money as well as a significant restructuring of the debt – however a little less than expected at the start. It is also planned to sell the group’s activities in Latin America – particularly in Brazil – for which three quarters of the group’s employees work.
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If an agreement in principle is indeed approved, Casino then plans to submit the plan for the approval of its current shareholders. ” at the latest “ on September 30, for a restructuring of its debt expected by the end of the year.
Rally, parent company in difficulty
Consequence of the massive dilution of the current shareholders of Casino, the parent company Rallye, controlled by Jean-Charles Naouri, would be deprived “almost totally (…) of any future dividends paid by the Casino Group and would compromise the company’s ability to execute its safeguard plan within the set deadline”, according to the Rallye press release published on Thursday. Since the company does not have any other assets likely to bring in new money, it “would have no other realistic solution in the long term than liquidation or cessation of activity”is specified in the same document.
As for Casino, its financial situation is critical. The group unveiled Thursday a net loss of 2.23 billion euros in the first half, due in particular to impairments, against 259 million euros a year earlier.
He also warned that “the situation presents an uncertainty to date” on his ability “to continue operating”, “given the legal steps still to be taken to implement the financial restructuring” which the group has been working on for months as part of an amicable debt conciliation procedure.
The latter amounted to 6.1 billion euros as of June 30, including 5.5 billion in France. A year earlier at the same period, the group’s debt was 5.97 billion.
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On the stock market, the quotation of the action remained suspended Thursday, at the request of Casino, “awaiting the publication of a press release”. The price has melted by more than 68% since the beginning of the year and stood at 3.11 euros at the close on Wednesday evening.
Also read: Casino announces poor half-year results and suspends its stock market action pending a decision on the takeover bid
Uncertainties for employees
Casino saw its sales fall by 4.2% in the first half of 2023, weighed down by price reductions of around 10% in its French supermarkets and hypermarkets, decided after a year in 2022 when the group had maintained a positioning of higher price than the competition.
The distributor’s situation is fraught with uncertainty for its employees. Daniel Kretinsky pledged to “preserve the maximum possible perimeter” hypermarkets and supermarkets. According to the group’s first union, Force Ouvrière, the buyers plan to “to franchise a large number of stores”a model in which the majority of costs are borne by the manager.
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The Casino situation “augurs new transformations in which employees could once again be the adjustment variable”also alerted the CFDT Services, for whom the passage of franchise stores would be as many “restructurings that do not say their name”. She hopes “a real involvement of the public authorities”.
Before the National Assembly, the Minister of the Economy, Bruno Le Maire, declared on July 11 that the State would be vigilant about “the future of the group’s 50,000 employees” in France and on maintaining the group’s historic headquarters in Saint-Etienne. The candidates for the takeover of Casino have said they want to maintain the headquarters in Saint-Etienne and make it “the center of innovation” of the group.
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