PEP is talks to acquire SG Fleet | TPG explores merger options for Novotech | Bingo debt

Good evening,

Macquarie-backed Bingo may have secured a$100 million lifeline, but the waste management company’s woes are far from over.

Street Talk understands debt trading house SC Lowy went wide last week trying to drum up interest in a $25 million parcel of Bingo debt from an unknown seller between 85¢ and 86¢ a piece.

Naturally, 85¢ is not enough to prick the ears of special opportunity funds which typically look to get involved around the 80¢ on the dollar mark. Still, it’s a far cry from “at par” despite Bingo mopping up $100 million in new debt from Macquarie Asset Management and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC in September to help it meet upcoming payments.

Moody’s delivered more bad news in the weeks following the issuance, slashing Bingo’s credit rating three notches to what the agency calls Caa2 – a level that is considered highly risky and likely to default. It blamed the downgrade on the terms of the new loan which allows interest to accrue.

Read the full story tomorrow and more on the Street Talk page.

The weight of a single unlisted holding in the Merchant Opportunities’ fund – medical cannabis company EuroCann Corporation – has blown out to more than a third, causing it to freeze redemptions temporarily. This resulted from the maturation of a convertible note and around $15 million in redemptions in the 2024 financial year.

A rally in oil prices on fears of an escalation in the Ukraine-Russia conflict pushed energy stocks higher, sending the Australian sharemarket to a fresh closing high on Friday.

Click here for the latest equity market wrap.