Pitney Bowes Announces Value-Maximizing Exit Path for Global Ecommerce Segment
August 08 2024 - 4:55PM
Business Wire
Company Sells Controlling Interest in Global
Ecommerce Entities to Hilco Commercial Industrial, Which Intends to
Lead Orderly and Expeditious Wind-Down of Global Ecommerce
Business
Transaction Paves Way for Company to Eliminate
~$136 Million in Annual Losses and Fully Focus on Core,
Cash-Generating Businesses
Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE: PBI) (“Pitney Bowes” or the “Company”),
a global shipping and mailing company that provides technology,
logistics and financial services, today announced that it has sold
a controlling interest in the entities representing a substantial
majority of the Global Ecommerce (“GEC”) segment (the “GEC
Entities”) operating in the U.S. to Hilco Commercial Industrial, an
affiliate of Hilco Global (“Hilco”), to support a value-maximizing
liquidation of certain of the GEC Entities under the protection of
Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. This sale of the
controlling interest occurred on August 8, 2024. Hilco is a
recognized leader in helping companies maximize the value of their
assets and has worked with numerous organizations to wind-down
operations in an efficient, responsible manner.
Pitney Bowes’ Board of Directors (the “Board”) conducted a
comprehensive strategic review, with the assistance of independent
legal and financial advisors, prior to ultimately determining that
this exit path for GEC is in the best interests of both the
Company’s shareholders and other stakeholders. Notably, the GEC
segment had been struggling to achieve profitability over the past
several years in the face of macroeconomic and industry headwinds.
The Company expects this exit path to eliminate substantially all
of the losses associated with GEC, which were equal to
approximately $136 million for the year ended December 31, 2023.
Pitney Bowes is committed to ensuring that this process is as
seamless as possible for GEC employees, customers, partners and
vendors.
Lance Rosenzweig, Interim Chief Executive Officer and a member
of the Board, commented:
“When the Company announced our four strategic priorities in
late May, we committed to working with speed and urgency to
complete a comprehensive review of alternatives for GEC. We are
pleased to have delivered on that commitment by concluding a
productive review and identifying an exit path for GEC that
provides for an orderly and efficient wind-down of the business,
which will ultimately maximize value for Pitney Bowes shareholders.
This path also gives us a clear runway to streamline the Company
and increase profitability across our core, cash-generating
businesses: SendTech, Presort and Financial Services. In
conjunction with our cost reduction efforts and progress on cash
optimization, exiting GEC will also allow Pitney Bowes to make
substantial progress in deleveraging our balance sheet. With these
steps, we will be well-positioned to deliver stronger results in
2025 and pursue enhanced value for shareholders in the years to
come.”
The Company’s SendTech and Presort segments will continue to
operate in the normal course, and customers, partners and vendors
should not expect any impact. Additionally, the Pitney Bowes Bank
will not be affected by the GEC exit and will also continue to
conduct business in ordinary course.
Overview of GEC Exit
Path
Key details associated with the liquidation and wind-down, which
were approved by Pitney Bowes’ Board and GEC’s independent
governing body, as applicable, are as follows:
- Pitney Bowes has entered into amendments to the Company’s
credit agreement and note purchase agreement to allow for the GEC
exit without triggering any events of default for Pitney Bowes, and
also release the guarantees and liens provided by the GEC
Entities.
- Under Hilco’s ownership, two of the GEC Entities today
commenced voluntary cases under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy
Code.
- Pitney Bowes and GEC have signed a restructuring support
agreement (“RSA”) to facilitate GEC’s smooth transition into
Chapter 11. In accordance with the RSA, a subsidiary of Pitney
Bowes has committed to provide the GEC Entities, subject to court
approval, an approximately $45 million in debtor-in-possession
(“DIP”) financing in the form of a delayed draw term loan. This DIP
financing will support the efficient liquidation of the GEC
Entities through the Chapter 11 cases.
- Pitney Bowes anticipates that it will incur one-time cash costs
not to exceed approximately $150 million in connection with the GEC
exit.
- The parties expect that the wind-down process, which will
require certain approvals from the bankruptcy court, will conclude
in early 2025.
Additional information is available at www.DRF-Updates.com and
https://cases.stretto.com/DRFLogistics.
Advisors
BRG is acting as restructuring advisor, Vinson & Elkins LLP
is acting as legal advisor and Longacre Square Partners LLC is
acting as strategic and communications advisor to Pitney Bowes.
Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP is acting as legal advisor, Portage
Point Partners is acting as financial advisor and Hilco Commercial
Industrial and its affiliates are acting as wind-down consultants
to the GEC subsidiaries.
About Pitney Bowes
Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI) is a global shipping and mailing
company that provides technology, logistics and financial services
to more than 90 percent of the Fortune 500. Small business, retail,
enterprise and government clients around the world rely on Pitney
Bowes to remove the complexity of sending mail and parcels. For
additional information, visit: www.pitneybowes.com
Forward-Looking Statements
This document contains “forward-looking statements” about the
Company’s expected or potential future business and financial
performance. Forward-looking statements include, but are not
limited to, statements about future revenue and earnings guidance,
future events or conditions, and expected cost savings, elimination
of future losses, and anticipated deleveraging in connection with
Pitney Bowes’ announced strategic initiatives. Forward-looking
statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those projected. Factors which could cause future
financial performance to differ materially from expectations
include, without limitation, declining physical mail volumes;
changes in postal regulations or the operations and financial
health of posts in the U.S. or other major markets or changes to
the broader postal or shipping markets; the potential adverse
effects of the GEC exit and wind-down and related transactions on
the Company’s operations, management and employees and the risks
associated with operating the business during the restructuring
process and exit from the GEC business; risks and uncertainties
associated with the GEC exit and wind-down and related
transactions, including the ability to achieve the anticipated
benefits therefrom; the ability to successfully implement the
Company’s 2024 worldwide cost reduction initiative, the Company’s
cost rationalization and optimization initiatives and to achieve
expected cost reductions and improved efficiencies in connection
therewith; the loss of some of Pitney Bowes’ larger clients in the
Presort Services segments; the loss of, or significant changes to,
United States Postal Service (USPS) commercial programs, or the
Company’s contractual relationships with the USPS or their
performance under those contracts; the impacts of higher interest
rates and the potential for future interest rate increases on
Pitney Bowes’ cost of debt; and other factors as more fully
outlined in the Company's 2023 Form 10-K Annual Report and other
reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission during
2024. Pitney Bowes assumes no obligation to update any
forward-looking statements contained in this document as a result
of new information, events or developments.
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Chapter 11 Claims Agent: Stretto
DRFInquiries@stretto.com Toll-Free Case Hotline Number: (855)
314-0664 International Case Hotline Number: (714) 716-1968
https://cases.stretto.com/DRFLogistics Media: Longacre Square Partners Joe Germani /
Jessica McDougall, 646-386-0091 jgermani@longacresquare.com /
jmcdougall@longacresquare.com Investor
Relations: Alex Brown investorrelations@pb.com
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