Holding vehicle to enter administration as part of Wind Hellas’ restructuring

Hellas II, the parent holding company of Greek mobile, fixed line and broadband operator Wind Hellas has applied to the UK High Court to be placed in administration as part of a plan to cut a EUR3.2 billion (USD4.8 billion) debt pile. People familiar with the matter told Dow Jones Newswires that a pre-pack administration – a process under UK law where a business on the verge of insolvency is sold without liabilities – will be used to remove around EUR1 billion of subordinated debt from Wind Hellas’ balance sheet. The move comes less than a fortnight after the announcement that Weather Investments, an Egyptian-owned company which also controls Orascom Telecom, would keep its ownership of Wind Hellas.