(Reuters) – Juul Labs Inc is seeking fresh financing at a time when the company is navigating uncertainty due to lawsuits and a potential ban on sales of its e-cigarettes by U.S. health regulators, Bloomberg News reported on Friday.
The company’s bankers at Centerview Partners are sounding out investors for a possible $400 million first-lien term loan due August 2023, the report said, citing people with knowledge of the matter. (https://bloom.bg/3O9qStl)
The proceeds would help refinance an existing term loan, which has around $394 million outstanding and matures on the same date, the report added.
Juul did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment, while Centerview Partners declined comment.
Another option Juul is considering is a new $150 million second-lien term loan, which may have an August 2024 maturity, to help pay down some of the first-lien term loan and to increase liquidity, the report said.
Financing proposals for either loan are due July 21, according to the report.
Last month, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) blocked sales of Juul e-cigarettes and said the applications “lacked sufficient evidence” to show that sale of the products would be appropriate for public health.
However, Juul appealed the agency’s order and earlier this month FDA put on hold its ban saying it would do an additional review of the company’s marketing application.
(Reporting by Ananya Mariam Rajesh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
