Economou takes over DryShips’ debt
George Economou has decided to take on more than 90% of DryShips’s debt. The founder of the New York-listed firm moved to take an $85.1m syndicated loan previously controlled by Germany’s HSH Nordbank, taking Economou’s debt commitments in the dry bulk and offshore support company to a total of $154.5m.
Anthony Kandylidis, executive vice president and interim CFO at DryShips, commented: “We are very excited by the commitment shown by Mr George Economou to assist DryShips in its efforts to reach an agreement with its financing banks. With more than 90% of our debt now in the hands of our founder, it is safe to conclude that the Company is no longer in any danger from its lenders exercising any of their rights under the company’s existing defaults under their respective loan agreements. We are already in discussions with Mr Economou to amend the company’s debt and regain compliance. In that respect, we hope to be in a position to announce further positive developments in the near future.”