UK based publisher Incisive who mananged their purchase of the American Lawyer stable of publications on a mountain of debt, are, according to the Financial Times to be split into two entities
The FT reports that? Apax Partners, its private equity owner, is to? keep control of the American Lawyer Media business in the US, while banks will take over the struggling UK arm.
The FT? says ….The American Lawyer Media stable of magazines, conferences and websites, which include the New York Law Journal, Law.com, Investment Week and Real Estate Forum, was purchased by Incisive for $630m in August 2007.
However, the deal was financed with a separate bank loan from Apax’s initial ?208m purchase of Incisive in 2006, and the private equity group will unpick the New York-based company from its UK parent.
Apax has agreed to inject $15m (?9.2m) of fresh equity into American Lawyer Media as part of a debt-for-equity swap deal with Royal Bank of Scotland, cutting its total debt from $450m to $300m.
The paper also reports that? Incisive, owner of titles such as Legal Week, Risk and Hedge Funds Review, breached its banking covenants in December after falls in advertising at its magazines and a drop in attendance at its industry conferences.
The paper also reports that …...Senior lenders to Incisive are closing in on a deal to take control in a debt-for-equity swap that would leave Apax, and its co-investors Caledonia Investments and Ingenious Media, with only a negligible stake.
See the full report at http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c13de166-9822-11de-8d3d-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1
Here at HOB we’ve heard rumours over the past few months that there was trouble at Incisive and some reckoned they had bitten off more than they could chew..this now seems to be the case. It’s a pity if Legal Week is to suffer as it’s one of the better UK legal media sources… the old players Legalease & The Lawyer will be pleased.
This development also makes us wonder how the others and the likes of euromoney are doing in the advertising revenue stakes.
