Uncertainties over Odeon’s future have been resolved for the time being, as its parent company says “imminent bankruptcy is completely off the table”.
It’s no secret that the cinema industry is facing significant challenges at the moment, given that the vast majority of sites around the UK remain closed, with precious little sign of when they’ll open. In the US, some cinemas are open, but they’re very much in the minority.
Financially, it’s also been well known that Odeon’s parent company – AMC – has been staring down the barrel of bankruptcy. However, in a new announcement, AMC has revealed that it’s now secured investment to keep it solvent through the coming year. It’s brought in $506m in equity through the issuing primarily of new common shares. It’s also managed to put in place a $411m credit facility, that’s good until at least the middle of 2023.
As Adam Aron, the CEO of AMC, told Variety, “today, the sun is shining on AMC. After securing more than $1 billion of cash between April and November of 2020, through equity and debt raises along with a modest amount of asset sales, we are proud to announce today that over the past six weeks AMC has raised an additional $917 million capital infusion to bolster and solidify our liquidity and financial position. This means that any talk of an imminent bankruptcy for AMC is completely off the table”.
It’s fingers crossed for the cinema industry – including AMC – that some sense of normality resumes in 2021. For the minute, at least one chain has kept the metaphorical wolves from its doors…
