INTERVIEW-GM CFO 'limited' in options on bond offer

By Poornima Gupta

DETROIT, April 27 (Reuters) - General Motors Corp GM.N said on Monday it was limited in its options to change the terms of its new offer to bondholders who are being asked to swap about $27 billion in unsecured debt for equity in a restructured company.

The U.S. government does not support any higher offer for GM's bondholders or for increasing the bondholders' stake in a restructured GM beyond the proposed 10 percent, Chief Financial Officer Ray Young said on Monday in an interview.

Moreover, there was no guarantee the debtholders would receive the same offer if the automaker files for bankruptcy, he added.

Young said debtholders need to evaluate GM's offer thoroughly.

"What they are going to have to do is evaluate what 10 percent of common equity is worth in the future and compare that to what potentially the recovery to the bondholders in the event we have to go through a bankruptcy process," Young said.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, GM said it would offer 225 shares of its common stock for each $1,000 principal of outstanding bonds.

Under the terms of the exchange, the bondholders would have up to 10 percent of GM common stock, a level dictated by the U.S. Treasury and current stockholders would have 1 percent.

GM, which last week took $2 billion of emergency U.S. government loans to bring its total to $15.4 billion so far, has until June 1 to cut debt, slash costs and reach a concessionary deal with the United Auto Workers union.