Bankruptcy judge approves sale of chain that owns Idaho Statesman to hedge fund
A federal bankruptcy judge has approved the $312 million sale of McClatchy Co., owner of the Idaho Statesman. The approval officially cleared the way for the nation’s second largest local news company to exit bankruptcy under the leadership of the hedge fund that had been its largest lender.
Judge Michael E. Wiles approved a sale order in a hearing Tuesday that became all but a formality after McClatchy, Chatham Asset Management and less-protected creditors announced a compromise Monday to keep the sale on track.
In another important development, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., the federal agency that takes over pension plans from distressed companies, told the judge that it will take McClatchy’s pension plan.
Chatham, which manages $4.4 billion in assets from its New Jersey base, will continue to operate all 30 of McClatchy’s news organizations and will transfer most senior management and all employees to the new company.
That stands in contrast to a proposal by the backup bidder, Alden Capital Group, which proposed to cut around 1,000 jobs, a court filing shows.
Chatham also agreed to honor existing collective-bargaining agreements. CEO Craig Forman and board Chairman Kevin McClatchy, a descendant of the founder, will depart when the sale process concludes in September.
“We look forward to completing the transaction expeditiously so that McClatchy can continue to focus on the important journalism on which local communities depend,” Chatham said in a statement.
The purchase agreement calls for the sale to close in early September. After the 30-day transition period, the new company will cut all ties with the founding McClatchy family, which has been in control for 163 years from the corporate headquarters in Sacramento, California, where the company was founded.
The new company will be privately held. New Jersey-based Chatham will assemble a new board and name a new chief executive. No timetable for those decisions has been announced.
This story was originally published August 4, 2020 at 3:12 PM with the headline "Bankruptcy judge approves sale of chain that owns Idaho Statesman to hedge fund."
