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Microcap & Penny Stocks : Rat dog micro-cap picks... -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Catfish who wrote (7744)	4/12/2002 10:13:00 AM
From: Bucky Katt	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 48461

Another one bites the dust, to the tune of $1.3 Billion> Flag Telecom Says It Filed for Bankruptcy Protection (Update4) By Dex McLuskey Hamilton, Bermuda, April 12 (Bloomberg) -- Flag Telecom Holdings Ltd., staggering under $1.32 billion of debt, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, joining fiber-optic network rivals such as Global Crossing Ltd. The company's banks called a $257 million loan, triggering a clause that would allow investors to demand repayment of $982.5 million in bonds. Flag said it doesn't have the money. Flag and competitors including 360networks Inc. racked up billions in debt to build networks that failed to generate expected sales. Flag may be able to sell its undersea cables after Global Crossing's Asian unit attracted interest from 19 companies, analysts said. ``It was the last man standing in an exceptionally difficult market,'' said Steven Franck, a credit analyst at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter in London. ``In light of the interest in Global Crossing, Flag wouldn't be a bad second choice to pick up cheaply.'' Hamilton, Bermuda-based Flag said Wednesday it would ask creditors to exchange $1.25 billion of debt for new shares, cash and $210 million in notes. Verizon Communications Inc., the largest U.S. local-phone company, owns 18.6 percent of Flag, according to a regulatory filing. Seeking a Buyer? Flag, whose networks carry voice and data traffic for other telecommunications companies, has begun talks with bondholders, Chief Financial Officer Michel Cayouette said in an interview. ``The filing doesn't preclude specific actions (such as selling the business), although such actions will be subject to court approval,'' he said. He declined to say if Flag had received approaches from potential buyers. Flag will file a reorganization plan with the New York court if it reaches agreement with creditors. Bank lenders include Dresdner Bank AG, Barclays Capital, Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc and Societe Generale SA. The company's 300 million euros of 11.625 percent senior notes due 2010 are trading at about 28 percent of face value, investors said, up from 16 percent on Wednesday. Flag paid Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Andres Bande $1.4 million in 2001, including a $700,000 bonus, according to a U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission filing. In the same period, the net loss widened to $583 million and the shares lost 74 percent of their value. Shares of Flag fell 7 cents to 13 cents in early trading. They are down from a high of $44 in February 2000. The company had a market value of $26.8 million at the close of trading yesterday. ________________________________________________________ Forgive you!! Too funny...I post there once in awhile, like with MFCO, remember?