Standard & Poor’s has cut its long-term credit rating for estate agency Countrywide’s holding company Castle Holdco 4, which is owned by Apollo Advisors.
It has lowered Castle HoldCo’s rating to D (Default) from SD (Selective Default).
S&P credit analyst Mohammed Fayek said: “The rating actions follow the sanctioning of the restructuring scheme announced in February 2009, under which Countrywide would receive £112.5m of fresh equity capital to reduce its indebtedness to £175m.
“As per our general criteria, we consider the completion of a distressed exchange offer as equivalent to a default.”
In February, distressed debt fund Oaktree Capital and Polygon took a major stake in the Countrywide.
The parties contributed £112m of cash in a bid to cut the estate agency’s £740m of debt.
