Minoan approaches 'imminent' sale of travel business

31st Aug 2018 09:20

(Sharecast News) - Travel and leisure firm Minoan Group on Friday confirmed that it is close to reaching an agreement for the sale of Stewart Travel to its main lender, Zachary Asset Holdings.Following interest from a number of prospective buyers and a period of negotiation with Zachary, a sales agreement is expected to be concluded imminently, according to Minoan.The news comes after Minoan's loan facility with Zachary, which was originally held under the name Hillside International Holdings Limited, was extended to 31 August in order to allow for time for sale completion in order to fully repay the facility."In the circumstances, the board does not believe that the loan will be called pending the completion of negotiations and the culmination of the transaction, which should see it repaid in full," said a statement from Minoan.Meanwhile, the AIM-traded company has commenced with the cost restructuring exercise that it announced in its interim results in July, reducing fees in respect of the chairman's services by 50%.Measures such as this will be in effect until "there is a significant monetisation event in relation to the project.""As stated, following a sale on the expected terms, the group expects that it will have completely repaid its secured loan facility and removed a major source of future dilution, albeit at the expense of an immediate increase in the issued capital, which will not affect the fully diluted figure."Minoan Group's shares were up 5.56% at 5.70p at 0951 BST.