ZPG refinances its debt following recent business buying spree

Zoopla parent company ZPG has revealed that it is to restructure its debt by raising £200 million through a bond or ‘senior notes’ issue. ZPG says the bonds will become due for repayment in five years’ time and will help it refinance its debt by securing more “attractive interest rates” until 2023. This gives it a further three years of breathing space – its existing debt, which is part of a £325 million facility, is due for repayment in 2020. In ZPG’s most recent financial report for 2017, the company says it spent £97.5 million repaying debt, up from £52.5 million during 2016. The bond issue, which will not be public and will be offered to investors through different financial channels, follows a significant spending spree by the company which has seen it acquire several businesses. Expensive acquisitions This has included most recently – and expensively – the acquisition of financial products website Money for £80m and Dutch property data firm Calcasa for £26.5 million. Within its latest results published late last year, ZPG revealed that it had a net debt (borrowings minus cash in the bank) of £191.5 million, up from £146.5 million in 2016, although its total borrowings…

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