Thai Miss Universe owner loses half its value on payment delay

BANGKOK (Bloomberg): Shares of JKN Global Group Pcl, a Thai media company that owns the Miss Universe beauty pageant brand, extended a record low after the company said it’s unable to fully honour its bond repayments.

JKN sank as much as 28% to 1.23 baht after the company on Thursday said that it can pay only 26% of interest and principal for bonds due today, citing global and domestic economic challenges.

The shares have lost almost 50% of their value since the announcement.

JKN, which bought the Miss Universe Organization for US$20 million last year, has called a meeting of bond holders on Sept. 29 to seek their approval for the payment delay, Chief Executive Officer Jakapong Jakrajutatip said in a statement Thursday.

The company will repay 157 million baht (US$4.47 million) on bonds due on Sept. 1, compared with the total principal and interest due of 610 million baht, according to an exchange filing Thursday.

The partial payment of bonds due Friday is unlikely to trigger a "call default” as the company has proposed a specific schedule to pay the remaining interest and principal, according to Jakkapong. - Bloomberg