London, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Doorstep lender International
Personal Finance said on Tuesday there is a "material
uncertainty" around its ability to continue as a going concern
after posting a loss and given the upcoming maturity of a
eurobond.
The UK-listed firm, which operates primarily in Central and
Eastern Europe and Mexico, posted a pretax loss of 53.3 million
pounds ($70.05 million) in the first half of 2020 after COVID-19
hampered its ability to collect loan repayments and forced it to
significantly tighten its lending criteria.
The company said its collections have now improved and it is
implementing a strategy to rebuild its business.
However, it has near-term funding issues with a 397 million
euro ($469.13 million) eurobond due to mature in April 2021 and
a need to renegotiate the terms of some of its loans.
"The need to refinance the 2021 Eurobond and obtain covenant
amendments create a material uncertainty surrounding going
concern," the company said.
It added that the board is confident the company will be
able to refinance the bond, and that they have a reasonable
expectation the group will be able to continue trading for the
foreseeable future.
($1 = 0.7609 pounds)
($1 = 0.8462 euros)
(Reporting by Rachel Armstrong; editing by Pamela Barbaglia)