Shareholders in Premiere have approved a capital increase of €412 million, despite initial objections from some of the satcaster’s smaller investors. In the end the measure was approved by 99.6% of the company’s capital base.
The refinancing was needed after Premiere came close to breaching covenants attached to earlier credit agreements. Last December’s settlement with the banks was dependent on a €450 million increase in company equity. News Corp injected a further €38.4 million in January when it raised its stake from 25.01% to 29%. No mandatory offer is required to be made to minority shareholders, should News Corp’s stake exceed 30% during the restructuring, following an exemption granted by BaFin, the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority.
