Advanta terminates $1.4 bln debt buyback offer

Mon Jun 8, 2009 11:18pm BST
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June 8 (Reuters) - Advanta Corp ADVNB.O said on Monday it terminated its cash tender offer to buy back up to $1.4 billion of debt issued by its main securitization trust after determining it could not satisfy a regulatory condition tied to the offer.

As a result of the action, Advanta said it would not be able to complete all of the components of the plan previously set forth, which were intended to limit the firm's credit loss exposure and maximize its capital and its liquidity measures, the company said in a press release.

An Advanta company spokesperson could not immediately be reached on Monday.

The firm said it still expects to realize the limitation of its credit loss exposure due to the early amortization of the firm's securitization transactions that are expected to begin this month and the closing of all the customer accounts to future purchases and activity that was effective as of May 30.

Advanta said it expects to enter into an agreement with its regulators in the near term about it operations.

The Philadelphia-based firm, which issues credit cards to small businesses, stop making new loans last month after defaults surged and it lost access to its main source of funding. It announced it would shutdown about 1 million credit card accounts on June 10, when it expects to lose access to the securitization trust it uses to sell credit card loans to investors.

The firm said the termination of its Advanta Business Card Master Trust class A notes on Monday has no impact on Advanta's ability to proceed with its cash offer for $100 million of trust preferred securities in its Advanta Capital Trust I's securitization.

(Additonal reporting by Juan Lagorio)

(Reporting by Nancy Leinfuss; Editing by Diane Craft)

 
 
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