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       T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R

                          E U R O P E

          Friday, January 31, 2025, Vol. 26, No. 23

                           Headlines



B E L G I U M

UNITED PETFOOD: S&P Assigns 'BB-' ICR, Outlook Stable


F R A N C E

ECOTONE HOLDCO III: S&P Ups ICR to B- on Reduced Refinancing Risks
OVH GROUPE: S&P Assigns 'BB-' Issuer Credit Rating, Outlook Stable


I R E L A N D

BLACKROCK EUROPEAN IV: S&P Affirms 'B-(sf)' rating on Cl. F Notes
HARVEST CLO XXXIV: S&P Assigns Prelim. B-(sf) Rating on F Notes
TAURUS SP 2021-2: Moody's Affirms Ba3 Rating on EUR23.292MM E Notes


I T A L Y

CENTURION NEWCO: S&P Affirms 'B-' ICR, Outlook Negative
FIBERCOP SPA: S&P Assigns 'BB+' Issuer Credit Rating, Outlook Neg.


S L O V A K I A

NOVIS INSURANCE: S&P Lowers ICR to 'CCC-', On CreditWatch Negative


S P A I N

DEOLEO SA: S&P Assigns 'B-' Rating on EUR60MM Term Loan B


S W I T Z E R L A N D

IXS HOLDINGS: Moody's Raises CFR to 'B3', Outlook Stable
SELECTA GROUP: S&P Cuts ICR to 'CCC-' on Delayed Interest Payment


U K R A I N E

UKRAINIAN RAILWAYS: S&P Raises LT ICR to 'CCC-' on Coupon Payments


U N I T E D   K I N G D O M

CAMBRIDGE SOLAR: Begbies Traynor Named as Administrators
INTERACTIVE EDUCATION: SFP Restructuring Named as Administrators
LONDON COMMUNITY: PKF Littlejohn Named as Administrators
PRAESIDIAD GROUP: Moody's Withdraws 'C' Corporate Family Rating
REP PRODUCTIONS 7: Sanderlings LLP Named as Administrators

RYEDALE CARAVAN: PKF Smith Named as Administrators
THAMES WATER: Moody's Cuts CFR to 'Caa3' & Alters Outlook to Stable
TOGETHER ASSET 2023-1ST2: S&P Assigns 'BB+(sf)' Rating on F Notes
TOGETHER ASSET 2025-2ND1: S&P Assigns 'B' Rating on F-Dfrd Notes
VIKING RESOURCES: Quantuma Advisory Named as Administrators

VUE ENTERTAINMENT: S&P Affirms CCC+ ICR & Alters Outlook to Stable
ZEUS BIDCO: S&P Downgrades LT ICR to 'CCC+' on High Leverage


X X X X X X X X

[*] BOOK REVIEW: Taking Charge

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B E L G I U M
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UNITED PETFOOD: S&P Assigns 'BB-' ICR, Outlook Stable
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S&P Global Ratings assigned its 'BB-' ratings on United Petfood
Group B.V. and to its proposed new EUR1,225 million term loan B
(TLB) due in 2032. S&P also assigned a recovery rating of '3' to
the new debt instrument, reflecting its expectation of meaningful
recovery (50%-70%; rounded estimate 60%) in the event of default.

The stable outlook reflects S&P's view that United Petfood's
operating performance in European pet food should remain resilient
in 2025 with adjusted debt to EBITDA stabilizing at about 4.0x and
positive growing FOCF.

On Jan. 27, 2025, Belgium-based pet food producer United Petfood
Group B.V. (United Petfood) announced its intention to issue a new
EUR1,225 million term loan B (TLB) and a new EUR200 million
revolving credit facility (RCF). These new debt instruments will
fund part of the acquisition of United Petfood by Waterland Private
Equity Investments B.V. (72%) alongside the Dumoulin family and
management (28%) as part of the transfer of the company into a new
single-asset continuation fund, and the refinancing of existing
debt facilities.

The proposed fund-to-fund transaction will mean adjusted debt
leverage is likely to peak at about 4.0x in 2025 with gradual debt
deleveraging going forward.  The company is looking to issue a new
EUR1,225 million seven-year TLB to partly fund the acquisition,
refinance the outstanding EUR456 million TLB and cover fees. This
should be supported by a new EUR200 million six and a half-year
RCF, expected to be undrawn at closing. S&P said, "We understand
that the rationale behind the transaction is to realize some
returns and notably to reset the investment horizon to 2030-2031 to
tap into the growth potential of the business. Following completion
of the transaction, Waterland's stake will increase from 68% to 72%
with the remaining to be held by the Dumoulin family (24%) and
management (4%). In our view, the company has built sufficient
headroom over the last years to absorb the new debt from the
proposed transaction with leverage after closing expected at about
4.0x, comfortably below our 5.0x downside trigger for the rating
category."

S&P said, "We expect no material changes to the company's
demonstrated governance and financial policy over the past years
thanks to the influence from the founding family.  The family's
influence should continue to crystalize in minority protection
rights, a veto right on discretionary spending, and the agreement
with the sponsor to keep net leverage consistently below 4.5x
(about 5.0x on an S&P Global Ratings-adjusted basis). The board
composition will remain unchanged with the founding family in
charge of the day-to-day operations and strategic decisions being
taken at board level, subject to certain veto rights for the
family. Waterland remains particularly focused on the buy and build
strategy, which we anticipate will remain as a key growth pillar
over the remaining investment horizon. That said, the company's
successful track record of its acquisition strategy mitigates
integration risk. United Petfood has historically been disciplined
regarding the price it pays for new products and is careful to
acquire already functioning operations that do not require
investment efforts to realize the expected gross profit. We
forecast about EUR100 million annual acquisition spending over
2025-2026, from about EUR150 million estimated in 2024, equally
split between pure acquisitions and asset deals."

In 2024, United Petfood will continue its track record of strong
operating performance which should position it well for stronger
cash generation in 2025 and 2026.  S&P said, "We expect S&P Global
Ratings-adjusted EBITDA to have reached about EUR320 million in
2024, up by approximately 40% year on year, and markedly above our
previous expectation of about EUR250 million-EUR260 million. This
mainly stems from a higher-than-expected 400 basis points (bps)-500
bps uplift in the adjusted EBITDA margin, from 19.9% in 2023. This
comes on the back of product premiumization across categories,
higher sales of wet and snacks, operational improvements, as well
as declining commodity costs--notably cereals, edible oils, and
energy—while selling prices remained relatively stable. This was
only partly offset by higher operating costs that reflect
increasing commercial and manufacturing costs, and central costs
derived from the business expansion. We expect like-for-like sales
have increased about 8.5% in 2024, mainly driven by higher volumes
across categories and regions but also an improving category mix.
This follows a strong performance over the previous years,
attesting to United Petfood's strategic positioning within the
dynamic pet food industry." A successful execution of management
and commercial initiatives have allowed for a material deleveraging
from 3.9x adjusted debt to EBITDA in 2022, to 2.4x in 2023, and
1.6x estimated by year-end 2024. During this period, the company
demonstrated its ability to navigate inflationary environments with
nimble price increases and premiumization initiatives. Despite
increasing retail prices, volumes continued increasing across all
major channels, regions, and categories, reflecting low price
elasticity and positive pet food trends across Europe.

S&P said, "We forecast strong volume growth and mix improvements
over 2025-2026, although adjusted EBITDA will be constrained by
pricing pressures and the expanding overhead investments.  Under
our updated base case we expect about 9% organic growth annually
coming from higher volumes and the ramp up of the recently acquired
assets, more than offsetting a neutral-to-slightly negative net
pricing effect. After about three years of increasing selling
prices, we expect them to be lower in 2025 and remain stable in
2026. This reflects increasing pressures from retailers looking to
remain competitive compared with its peers and automatic price
adjustments under co-manufacturing agreements with brand owners as
certain key input costs normalize. For 2026, the net pricing effect
should be relatively flat thanks to easing pricing pressures and
the improving category and geographical mix from the expected
expansion of wet, snacks, and U.S. sales. We also expect strong
volume growth at about 9%-11% over the forecast period supported by
the increasing share of the wallet in Western Europe on the back of
cross-selling wet and snacks to dry customers, market-led growth in
Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), and new client accounts notably
in the U.S. We forecast S&P Global Ratings-adjusted EBITDA to
stabilize in 2025 as the topline expansion is neglected by a gross
margin squeeze--lower selling prices combined with normalizing but
still increasing input costs; higher commercial and overhead costs
to support the expansion of the commercial network and the
manufacturing footprint; and the ramp-up of acquisitions. In 2026,
we expect higher volumes to drive adjusted EBITDA growth of about
14%-15% as the gross margin stabilizes thanks to easing pricing
pressures and normalizing overhead costs."

Sizable expansionary investments in 2025 and 2026 will likely limit
FOCF in the short term.  United Petfood is currently undertaking an
ambitious expansion that should be mostly financed by expansionary
capex and asset deals over 2024-2026. S&P said, "Despite average
spare manufacturing capacity at about 20%-30%, we understand that
the company wants to retain flexibility in its operations, expand
its dry footprint to remain close to clients in new regions, and
improve capacity in adjacent categories where it plans to ramp-up
production. At the same time, the company intends to improve
automation; notably in wet manufacturing lines, which are more
labor intensive; and streamline acquired manufacturing sites. Our
capex estimate includes asset deals because we think that organic
growth will continue to be complemented by the integration of
acquired manufacturing facilities, notably outside of its core
regions and sites with complementary wet and snacks technologies.
We estimate capex at about EUR200 million in 2024, including asset
deals of approximately EUR100 million, and EUR120 million-EUR140
million annually over 2025-2026, including asset deals of
approximately EUR50 million annually. Although we view asset deals
more akin to acquisitions, we classify them as capex under our
criteria. We note the high flexibility on capex over the forecast
period as positive, considering that replacement capex is very low
at about 1% of sales and we understand that approximately 80% of
the total capex figure is highly discretionary. We note that FOCF
is also affected by a material increase in cash interests linked to
the new debt. As a result, we think that FOCF will be relatively
limited over the forecast period for the rating category--EUR10
million-EUR20 million in 2024 (EUR110 million-EUR130 million
excluding asset deals) and EUR30 million-EUR70 million annually
over 2025-2026 (EUR80 million–EUR110 million excluding asset
deals)."

United Petfood's business benefits from higher than sector average
profitability and topline growth opportunities supported by its
strategic positioning in the dynamic petfood industry.  With an S&P
Global Ratings-adjusted EBITDA forecast at 21%-22% over the
forecast year, United Petfood presents higher-than-average
profitability in the outsourced European pet food industry. S&P
said, "In our view, this reflects the scale and efficiency of its
operations and notably its strategic channel mix, which, contrary
to its competitors, is evenly exposed to mass retailers and brand
owners. We view the exposure to the brand owners' channel as
supportive of bargaining power and customer stickiness because the
company acts more like a partner than a private-label manufacturer.
It also limits the exposure to cost volatility considering the
nature of the contractual relationships. The brand owners' product
portfolios are generally skewed toward premium products, which, in
turn, favors United Petfood's price premium. The company's exposure
to the retail sector allows it to tap into the expansion of retail,
which started to accelerate in Western Europe and the U.S. on the
back of increasing penetration of private label as consumers become
more cost-conscious in the current economic environment. The
company benefits from operating in the pet food industry, which has
proven to be more resilient and dynamic than other
consumer-packaged goods categories thanks to its relatively
inelastic demand and strong underlying consumer trends. As
evidence, sector volumes and premiumization trends continued over
the last three years in the face of non-stop inflation in retail
prices and intensifying economic uncertainty. In our view, this
underscores pet owners' strongly emotional purchasing behaviors, as
they are reportedly willing to prioritize expenses for their pets
over their own."

United Petfood's ongoing business expansion into new regions
(including the U.S. and Turkiye) should allow the company to
capture additional growth outside of dry pet food in Western
Europe.  The company has an ambitious plan to strengthen its
leadership in core Western European markets, consolidate its
position in CEE while making inroads into new regions with
attractive fundamentals. S&P said, "In Western Europe, we expect
the company to outpace a stabilizing market as it cross-sells wet
and snacks products to dry customers while key clients gradually
gain market share. Despite the market stabilization, we continue to
see growth potential over the long term, coming from ongoing
cultural shifts--such as the rising prevalence of single-person
households and delayed parenthood; further premiumization on the
back of innovation; and the rising awareness on animal health and
sustainability. That said, we see stronger growth opportunities for
United Petfood coming from developing markets (CEE, Middle East,
and Asia) and the U.S., considering more favorable industry trends
and its already strong foothold in Western Europe. In developing
regions, we expect stronger pet food market growth as positive
demographic trends, cultural changes, and a rising middle class
translates into increasing numbers of pets, pet food gradually
replacing table scraps, and product premiumization. In CEE, the
company aims to increase in line with the market, considering its
already established position. However, we see upside potential
coming from new retail accounts and a better product mix as the
company leverages its strong commercial capabilities and recent
investments into wet and snacks production." Following the
acquisition of Lider Pet food in 2023, the company established a
local Turkish business and set it up as an export platform to the
Middle East and Asia-Pacific. United Petfood is also establishing
its position in the U.S., after setting up a local commercial
network and acquiring a dry manufacturing plant in Mishawaka. This
brings about significant growth opportunities considering the size
of the market and its lower private label penetration as well as
more premiumization opportunities compared with Western Europe.

S&P said, "The stable outlook reflects our view that United
Petfood's operating performance in European pet food should remain
resilient in 2025 with adjusted debt to EBITDA stabilizing at about
4.0x and FFO cash interest at 3.5x-4.0x.

"Under our base case, we think that the company will increase
volumes above the sector average in its key markets, gradually
penetrating new geographies like the U.S. while benefitting from
cost leadership and product mix improvements. We also think that
the company will gradually improve positive FOCF generation in 2025
and 2026 compared with 2024 despite higher interest costs with more
measured spending on expansionary capex and asset acquisitions.

"We could lower the rating over the next 12 months if United
Petfood's leverage rises above 5.0x with no prospects of rapid
deleveraging, or if FOCF turns negative. This could arise if the
company shifts toward a more aggressive financial policy than
anticipated, leading to higher discretionary spending on
acquisitions and expansion capex. This could also arise from
unexpected operating headwinds such as demand sharply falling in
core countries, loss of key contracts, increasing retail pressures
to lower prices, or an unsuccessful integration of the expected
acquisitions.

"We could take a positive rating action if United Petfood maintains
S&P Global Ratings-adjusted leverage comfortably below 4.0x on a
sustained basis with a long-term commitment to maintain such levels
with stronger prospects in terms of FOCF growth."




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F R A N C E
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ECOTONE HOLDCO III: S&P Ups ICR to B- on Reduced Refinancing Risks
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S&P Global Ratings raised its long-term issuer credit rating on
French food producer Ecotone Holdco III SAS to 'B-' from 'CCC+'. At
the same time, S&P raised its issue rating on the EUR405 million
term loan B (after the proposed EUR85 million repayment) to 'B-'
from 'CCC+', with the recovery rating unchanged at '3' (rounded
recovery estimate: 55%).

The stable outlook reflects S&P's view that Ecotone will sustain a
resilient operational performance over the next 12 months,
reflected by an adjusted EBITDA margin of 10.0%-10.5% thanks to
increasing volumes supporting manufacturing efficiencies, and by a
positive free operating cash flow (FOCF) cushion.

Ecotone is proposing an amend-and-extend (A&E) transaction
alongside a partial repayment of its outstanding term loan B (TLB),
which it will fund with proceeds from the recent disposal of its
peanut butter brand Whole Earth.

The proposed transaction significantly eases Ecotone's near-term
refinancing risks and improves its credit metrics. Ecotone's
proposed amend-and-extend transaction on its first-lien TLB and RCF
improves its debt maturity profile because the maturities of the
senior facilities will be pushed back by three years to September
2029 and June 2029, respectively. Additionally, the company intends
to use the EUR85 million proceeds from the disposal of its wholly
owned Whole Earth brand to partially repay its outstanding TLB,
which would reduce to EUR405 million from EUR490 million. S&P said,
"The lower adjusted debt after the transaction, combined with our
forecast of resilient operating performance and positive FOCF in
2025, means that cash flow and credit metrics will be stronger than
in our previous base case. As such, we forecast S&P Global
Ratings-adjusted debt to EBITDA to reach 8.0x-8.5x and an FFO cash
interest coverage ratio of about 2.0x in 2025. We view those ratios
as commensurate with a 'B-' issuer credit rating."

S&P said, "We view the proposed transaction as proactive treasury
management rather than a distressed debt restructuring. This is
because Ecotone is generating positive FOCF with an adequate
liquidity position. Furthermore, the existing lenders would be
offered the option to be repaid at par or remain in the capital
structure without alteration to maturity, margin, collateral, or
ranking. We also note that Ecotone would conduct the proposed
transaction well ahead of the September 2026 maturity of its TLB.

"We forecast a 3%-5% revenue decline in 2025, reflecting the loss
of revenue from the disposal of Whole Earth not being fully offset
by the growth in Ecotone's core brands. Revenue increased by 2.4%
2024. Revenue growth was especially strong within the hot drinks
category, thanks to the strong growth in revenue from the Clipper
brand, and in the bread and biscuit alternatives category,
supported by growth in revenue from the Kallo brand. However, we
note that plant-based drink revenue declined in that period because
of intense competition from large multinational producers.

"We forecast continued revenue growth from Ecotone's core brands
into 2025 thanks to supportive consumer behavior. Consumers
increasingly look for healthy, non-processed food, while there is
growing demand for vegetarian and vegan alternatives. Additionally,
consumers are more aware of the sustainability of their food
choices. We also estimate that the easing of inflationary pressure
on food raw materials could further bolster consumer demand for
premium categories. We see Ecotone as well positioned to capture
those trends thanks to its portfolio of well-regarded brands across
healthy categories; its focus on vegetarian products, which make up
97% of its revenue; and its strong focus on sustainability topics,
as illustrated by its high B-Corporation certification.

"Assuming a deconsolidation of the Whole Earth brand from November
2024, which is estimated to have generated about EUR33.6 million of
revenue in 2024, we forecast reported revenue to decline moderately
in 2025. Excluding the effect of the Whole Earth disposal, we
anticipate revenue growth of 1%-3% this year. We do not consider
the disposal of Whole Earth will meaningfully affect Ecotone's
growth prospects as it represented less than 5% of its total
revenue.

"We anticipate Ecotone will gradually achieve a stronger S&P Global
Ratings-adjusted EBITDA margin of about 10.0%-10.5% in 2025 thanks
to a better product mix and improved productivity. Those metrics
are higher than the 9.4% achieved in 2023. Profitability gains will
come, in our view, from better utilization of its manufacturing
assets, as Ecotone will use its spare capacity to meet planned
volume growth. Our forecast is also supported by a shift in the
product mix toward the more profitable Clipper, Tanoshi, and Bjorg
brands, and by the disposal of the Whole Earth brand, which had a
dilutive impact on gross margins. We forecast Ecotone will invest
more in marketing to support volume growth in its core brands and
to maintain a stable workforce. Additionally, Ecotone has
identified margin expansion opportunities across the optimization
of its manufacturing assets, the optimization of recipes and
ingredients, a more cost-efficient sourcing approach, and savings
on logistics and transport. Our base case encompasses about EUR5
million of restructuring costs in 2025 to achieve those
objectives.

"Ecotone will likely generate annual FOCF of at least EUR20 million
in 2025 thanks to good control over its working capital and limited
capital expenditure (capex) requirements. We project small cash
inflows from working capital of up to EUR3 million in 2025. This is
because we forecast Ecotone will efficiently manage its inventory
requirements and use its factoring program to accelerate cash
conversion. We anticipate very limited annual capex of close to
EUR5 million in 2025, which is needed to maintain manufacturing
assets and support margin expansion initiatives. We do not include
any capex for capacity expansion because we estimate that Ecotone
could use its spare capacity to meet our forecast volume growth. We
believe the positive FOCF supports the company's liquidity
position, enabling adequate funds for its day-to-day operations. We
also forecast the company to maintain adequate headroom under its
financial covenants for the next 12 months.

"The stable outlook reflects our view that Ecotone's operating
performance should gradually improve from 2024 onwards. Under our
base-case scenario, we project S&P Global Ratings-adjusted debt to
EBITDA will decrease to around 8.5x in 2025 from 10.0x in 2023, FFO
cash interest coverage will reach 2.0x in 2025, and FOCF will
remain positive. This assumes that Ecotone will gradually restore
sales growth and profitability thanks to a better product mix and
improved productivity.

"We could lower the ratings if the transaction deviates from our
expectations outlined above such that we would view it as a
distressed exchange.

"We could also lower the rating over the next 12 months if
Ecotone's credit metrics deteriorate, compared to our base case, to
the extent that long-term refinancing risks resurface. We would
also view negatively if FOCF turns negative as this would pressure
the company's liquidity position. We believe this could occur if
Ecotone cannot restore volume growth across its most profitable
product categories due to adverse consumption trends and intense
competition from brands and private labels in its main geographical
markets, despite higher marketing spending.

"We could raise the ratings over the next 12 months if adjusted
debt to EBITDA sustainably decreases to well below 7.0x and FOCF at
least in line with our base case. We think this could happen if
internal cash flows significantly exceed our base-case projections
thanks to strong volume growth dynamics across the product
portfolio and geographies, supported by a successful product and
price mix strategy and improved productivity and additional cost
savings benefits."


OVH GROUPE: S&P Assigns 'BB-' Issuer Credit Rating, Outlook Stable
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S&P Global Ratings assigned its 'BB-' long-term issuer credit
rating to cloud infrastructure provider OVH Groupe S.A. (OVHcloud).
S&P also assigned its 'BB-' issue rating and '3' recovery rating
to its proposed EUR470 million senior unsecured notes. The '3'
recovery rating reflects its expectation for meaningful (50%-70%;
rounded estimate: 65%) recovery in the event of a payment default.

S&P said, "The stable outlook reflects our expectation that
adjusted leverage will remain materially below 4.0x at year-end
2025, following about 10% revenue growth and adjusted EBITDA margin
expansion toward 35% stemming from lower inflationary pressures, a
more favorable business mix, and lower capitalized software
development costs, which we believe will offset still negative but
growing FOCF after leases that supports future top-line growth, as
OVHcloud is wrapping-up its investment cycles in data centers and
software.

"We anticipate leverage will spike at 3.3x in 2025 following
OVHcloud's EUR350 million debt-funded share buyback, before
gradually reducing to below our 3.0x upside trigger in 2027. In
October 2024, OVHcloud filed for a share buyback up to EUR350
million with the French financial market authority and announced
the refinancing of its EUR500 million term loan. OVHcloud has
issued a financing package up to EUR1,120 million that includes a
EUR200 million seven-year multicurrency revolving credit facility
(RCF), a EUR450 million five-year term loan, and a bridge loan of
up to two years and EUR470 million that is now being refinanced
through a proposed issuance of EUR470 million senior unsecured
notes. Following a spike at 3.3x in 2025, well within our 4.0x
downside trigger, we expect steady deleveraging thereafter. We
forecast S&P Global Ratings-adjusted leverage falling to about 3.0x
by 2027, on the back of high single digit organic revenue growth
and a progressing EBITDA margin, helped by easing inflationary
pressures, a more favorable business mix, and lower capitalized
software development costs."

S&P expects FOCF after leases will improve but remain somewhat
negative because of the high capital intensity in the industry,
which will likely continue to constrain the rating despite
declining leverage. OVHcloud is wrapping up two five-year
investment cycles in data centers and software suites, which will
support a gradual improvement of FOCF after leases to about
negative EUR10 million per year in 2025-2027, from negative EUR67
million in 2024. The constant need for data center additions to
support growth, and continued investments in servers due to their
limited lifetime (although longer than usual with OVHcloud due to
its specific re-use strategy), will continue to constrain FOCF
generation. Therefore, rating upside seems remote at this stage,
despite falling leverage.

OVHcloud is the leading integrated European cloud provider, owning
a sizable portfolio of data centers and operating in a fast-growing
industry. It faces intense competition, however, from much larger
and better capitalized global peers in a fragmented and competitive
industry. OVHcloud fully owns a strategically located portfolio of
43 data centers, across nine countries and 16 local areas catering
to low-latency requirements. Its revenue will steadily benefit from
the long-term tailwinds seen in the data center and cloud-hosting
market, driven by the ongoing digitalization of the economy,
migration to the cloud, and ramp-up of AI. That said, its revenue
scale is significantly smaller than that of its direct competitors
such as AWS, Google Cloud, or Microsoft Azur, while it remains
concentrated in France, which represented about 49% of fiscal year
2023 (ended Aug. 31, 2023) revenue and where more than half of its
data centers are located.

OVHcloud has good client diversity and a solid track record of
retention, even though the industry is characterized by rapid
change and moderate switching costs. Client diversity is broad,
with the larger customer accounting for 2% of revenue only. The
share of corporate clients is steadily increasing but remains small
at about 20%, with other types of customers, such as tech and
digital, potentially more volatile. S&P also note that OVHcloud
operates in a fragmented and highly competitive industry, with fast
technological changes and moderate switching costs that are often
covered by competitors through offering free months of
subscription.

A rich and relatively unmatched set of certifications underpins
OVHcloud's differentiated value proposition. OVHcloud is positioned
as an alternative to U.S. and Asia-Pacific players because, through
its specific certification holdings, it offers complete insulation
from extra-territorial laws such as the Cloud Act in the U.S. or
the Cyber Security Law in China. OVHcloud benefits from most of the
standards and certifications with regard to data protection and is
one of the few holders of the French SecNumCloud certification, one
of the strictest data protection certifications in Europe. This
sovereignty positioning is particularly attractive for sensitive
sectors such as government-related companies, health care, or
defense, which strongly differentiates OVHcloud from competition.

OVHcloud's high degree of vertical integration, innovative skills,
and proprietary water-cooling technology enable lower and more
predictable prices, a key differentiator for SMEs. OVHcloud covers
almost the entire value chain, from the design and construction of
servers, the design, operating, and most often ownership of data
centers as well as ownership of related land, dark fiber, and
network equipment, to the provision of bare metal or hosted
private-cloud, public-cloud, and web-cloud services. This very high
degree of vertical integration, along with its proprietary
water-cooling technology, translates into lower and more
predictable prices than competition, a key differentiating factor
for SMEs that constitutes the majority of OVHcloud's customer base.
Prices are independent from bandwidth utilization and there are no
price escalators or direct pass-through embedded in contracts,
which further differentiates OVHcloud from competition and has
enabled customer loyalty with a net revenue retention rate of 107%
in 2024.

The stable outlook reflects S&P's expectation that adjusted
leverage will remain materially below 4.0x at year-end 2025
following about 10% revenue growth and adjusted EBITDA margin
expansion toward 35% (from 2.8% in 2024) stemming from lower
inflationary pressures, a more favorable business mix, and lower
capitalized software development costs. This will offset still
negative, but growing, FOCF after leases that supports future
top-line growth, as OVHcloud is wrapping up its investment cycles
in data centers and software.

S&P could lower its rating on OVHcloud if:

-- Revenue growth or expansion of its adjusted EBITDA margin fall
short of our current base case, leading to adjusted leverage
increasing to or above 4.0x;

-- Adjusted FOCF after leases fails to steadily improve as is
currently anticipated, unless counterbalanced by even faster
revenue and EBITDA growth, and more rapid deleveraging; or

-- OVHcloud's market position deteriorates, which could occur, for
example, with increased price competition and lower client
retention.

Any upside scenario is unlikely over the next 12-months, but S&P
could raise the rating if adjusted leverage sustainably decreases
below 3.0x and adjusted FOCF after leases turns positive, while
OVHcloud articulates and demonstrates a financial policy supporting
these strengthened credit metrics.




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BLACKROCK EUROPEAN IV: S&P Affirms 'B-(sf)' rating on Cl. F Notes
-----------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings raised its credit ratings on BlackRock European
CLO IV DAC's class B1 and B2 notes to 'AAA (sf)' from 'AA+ (sf)',
class C notes to 'AA+ (sf)' from 'AA- (sf)', class D notes to 'A+
(sf)' from 'A- (sf)', and class E notes to 'BB+ (sf)' from 'BB
(sf)'. S&P also affirmed its 'AAA (sf)' rating on the class A notes
and its 'B- (sf)' rating on the class F notes.

The rating actions follow the application of its global corporate
CLO criteria and its credit and cash flow analysis of the
transaction based on the December 2024 trustee report.

Since S&P's previous review in December 2023, the class A notes
have amortized by EUR136.6 million to 39% of their initial size. As
a result, the credit enhancement has increased for all the rated
notes.

According to the trustee report, all of the notes are paying
current interest, and all the coverage tests are passing.

  Portfolio benchmarks       
                                                 As of Dec. 2023
                                        Current*      review

  Portfolio weighted average rating         B            B
  'CCC' assets %                           9.0          6.2
  Weighted average life (years)           3.24         3.46
  Obligor diversity measure              80.02       123.09
  Industry diversity measure             23.22        24.21
  Regional diversity measure              1.34         1.32
  Total collateral amount (mil. EUR)§   273.83       417.76
  Defaulted assets (mil. EUR)             5.96         4.66
  Number of performing obligors            100          154
  'AAA' SDR (%)                          55.01        54.14
  'AAA' WARR (%) 36.67 37.60

SPWARF--S&P Global Ratings' weighted-average rating factor.
*Based on the portfolio composition as reported by the trustee in
December 2024 and S&P Global Ratings' data as of January 2025.
§Performing assets plus cash and expected recoveries on defaulted
assets.
SDR--Scenario default rate.
WARR--Weighted-average recovery rate

  Credit enhancement

         Current amount
  Class   (Mil. EUR)     Current CE (%)    Previous (%) CE
                        (based on the      (at Dec 2023 review)
                         December 2024
                        trustee report)

  A         105.23          61.6             42.1
  B1         38.50          40.2             28.1
  B2         20.00          40.2             28.1
  C          27.00          30.3             21.7
  D          22.50          22.1             16.3
  E          25.40          12.9             10.2
  F          13.90           7.8              6.9

Credit enhancement = [Performing balance + cash balance + recovery
on defaulted obligations (if any) – tranche balance (including
tranche balance of all senior tranches)]/ [Performing balance +
cash balance + recovery on defaulted obligations (if any)].
CE-- Credit enhancement

S&P said, "In our credit and cash flow analysis, we considered the
transaction's available current cash balance of EUR37.39 million,
as per the December 2024 trustee report. While the manager has
actively traded assets in 2024, no assets were purchased between
October and December. Additionally, proceeds not reinvested post
the reinvestment period shall be disbursed in accordance with the
principal proceeds priority of payments on the following payment
date, as per the transaction documentation.

"We considered a base case cash flow scenario where the full amount
of principal cash will be used to pay down the notes. In addition,
we also considered the possibility that the manager may still
reinvest unscheduled redemption proceeds and sale proceeds from
credit-impaired and credit-improved assets. Such reinvestments, as
opposed to repayment of the liabilities, may prolong the note
repayment profile for the most senior class.

"Our credit and cash flow analysis indicates that credit
enhancement for the class A notes remains commensurate with a 'AAA
(sf)' rating. We therefore affirmed our rating on the notes.

"Our analysis also indicates that the credit enhancement for the
class B1 and B2 notes is commensurate with a 'AAA (sf)' rating. We
have therefore raised our ratings on the class B1 and B2 notes to
'AAA (sf)' from 'AA+ (sf)'.

"Our base case cash flow analysis indicates that the available
credit enhancement levels for the class C to F notes are
commensurate with higher ratings than those assigned. For these
classes, we considered that the manager may still reinvest
unscheduled redemption proceeds and sale proceeds from
credit-impaired and credit-improved assets. We have also considered
the level of cushion between our break-even default rate and
scenario default rate for these notes at their passing rating
levels, as well as current macroeconomic conditions, the classes'
relative seniority, and their credit enhancement levels. We
therefore limited our upgrades on the class C, D, and E notes below
our base case analysis passing levels and affirmed our ratings on
the class F notes."

Counterparty, operational, and legal risks are adequately mitigated
in line with S&P's criteria.

S&P said, "Following the application of our structured finance
sovereign risk criteria, we consider the transaction's exposure to
country risk to be limited at the assigned ratings, as the exposure
to individual sovereigns does not exceed the diversification
thresholds outlined in our criteria."

BlackRock European CLO IV is a cash flow CLO transaction
securitizing a portfolio of primarily senior secured
euro-denominated leveraged loans and bonds issued by European
borrowers. The transaction is managed by BlackRock Investment
Management (U.K.) Ltd. Its reinvestment period ended in January
2022.


HARVEST CLO XXXIV: S&P Assigns Prelim. B-(sf) Rating on F Notes
---------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings assigned preliminary credit ratings to Harvest
CLO XXXIV DAC's class A-1, A-2, B-1, B-2, C, D, E, and F notes. At
closing, the issuer will issue unrated subordinated notes.

Under the transaction documents, the rated notes will pay quarterly
interest, unless a frequency switch event occurs. Following such an
event, the notes would permanently switch to semiannual payments.

The portfolio's reinvestment period ends 4.58 years after closing;
the non-call period ends 1.5 years after closing.

The preliminary ratings reflect S&P's assessment of:

-- The diversified collateral pool, which primarily comprises
broadly syndicated speculative-grade senior secured term loans and
bonds that are governed by collateral quality tests.

-- The credit enhancement provided through the subordination of
cash flows, excess spread, and overcollateralization.

-- The experience of the collateral manager's team, which can
affect the performance of the rated notes through collateral
selection, ongoing portfolio management, and trading.

-- The transaction's legal structure, which S&P expects to be
bankruptcy remote.

-- The transaction's counterparty risks, which S&P expects to be
in line with its counterparty rating framework.

  Portfolio benchmarks

  S&P Global Ratings' weighted-average rating factor    2,813.28
  Default rate dispersion                                 464.83
  Weighted-average life (years)                             4.72
  Obligor diversity measure                               126.24
  Industry diversity measure                               22.94
  Regional diversity measure                                1.22

  Transaction key metrics

  Portfolio weighted-average rating
  derived from S&P's CDO evaluator                             B
  'CCC' category rated assets (%)                           0.44
  Target 'AAA' weighted-average recovery (%)               37.32
  Target floating-rate assets (%)                          97.10
  Target weighted-average coupon                            4.24
  Target weighted-average spread (net of floors; %)         3.86

S&P said, "We understand that the portfolio will be
well-diversified at closing. Therefore, we have conducted our
credit and cash flow analysis by applying our criteria for
corporate cash flow CDOs. As of Jan. 20, 2025, the manager had
identified almost 87% of the assets in the portfolio, of which 37%
has been ramped up in the portfolio.

"In our cash flow analysis, we used the EUR450 million target par
amount, the covenanted targeted weighted-average spread (3.75%),
and the covenanted targeted weighted-average coupon (4.50%), as
indicated by the collateral manager. We assumed the identified
weighted-average recovery rates at all rating levels. We applied
various cash flow stress scenarios, using four different default
patterns, in conjunction with different interest rate stress
scenarios, for each liability rating category.

"Our credit and cash flow analysis shows that the class B-1 to
class F notes benefit from break-even default rate and scenario
default rate cushions that we would typically consider to be in
line with higher ratings than those assigned. However, as the CLO
is still in its reinvestment phase, during which the transaction's
credit risk profile could deteriorate, we have capped our
preliminary ratings on the notes. The class A-1 and A-2 notes can
withstand stresses commensurate with the assigned preliminary
ratings."

Until Oct. 15, 2029, when the reinvestment period ends, the
collateral manager may substitute the assets in the portfolio, as
long the CDO Monitor test is maintained or improved in relation to
the initial ratings on the notes. This test looks at the total
amount of losses that the transaction can sustain, as established
by the initial cash flows for each rating, and compares that with
the current portfolio's default potential, plus par losses to date.
As a result, until the end of the reinvestment period, the
collateral manager may, through trading, cause the transaction's
credit risk profile to deteriorate.

S&P said, "Under our structured finance sovereign risk criteria, we
consider that the transaction's exposure to country risk is
sufficiently mitigated at the assigned preliminary ratings.

"At closing, we expect that the transaction's documented
counterparty replacement and remedy mechanisms will adequately
mitigate its exposure to counterparty risk under our current
counterparty criteria.

"We expect the transaction's legal structure and framework to be
bankruptcy remote, in line with our legal criteria.

"Following our analysis of the credit, cash flow, counterparty,
operational, and legal risks, we believe our preliminary ratings
are commensurate with the available credit enhancement for the
class A-1 to F notes.

"In addition to our standard analysis, to indicate how rising
pressures among speculative-grade corporates could affect our
ratings on European CLO transactions, we also assessed the
sensitivity of our ratings on the class A-1 to E notes, based on
four hypothetical scenarios.

"As our ratings analysis includes additional considerations to be
incorporated before we would assign ratings in the 'CCC'
category--and we would assign a 'B-' rating if the criteria for
assigning a 'CCC' category rating are not met--we have not included
the above scenario analysis results for the class F notes."

Environmental, social, and governance

S&P said, "We regard the exposure to environmental, social, and
governance (ESG) credit factors in the transaction as being broadly
in line with our benchmark for the sector. Primarily due to the
diversity of the assets within CLOs, the exposure to environmental
credit factors is viewed as below average, social credit factors
are below average, and governance credit factors are average. For
this transaction, the documents prohibit assets from being related
to certain industries. Accordingly, since the exclusion of assets
from these industries does not result in material differences
between the transaction and our ESG benchmark for the sector, no
specific adjustments have been made in our rating analysis to
account for any ESG-related risks or opportunities."

  Ratings list

         Prelim.  Prelim. Balance  Credit       Indicative
  Class  rating*  (mil. EUR)   enhancement (%)   interest rate§

  A-1    AAA (sf)    274.50     39.00    Three/six-month EURIBOR
                                         plus 1.25%

  A-2    AAA (sf)      6.75     37.50    Three/six-month EURIBOR
                                         plus 1.75%

  B-1    AA (sf)      39.50     26.50    Three/six-month EURIBOR
                                         plus 1.95%

  B-2    AA (sf)      10.00     26.50    4.70%

  C      A (sf)       24.75     21.00    Three/six-month EURIBOR
                                         plus 2.30%

  D      BBB- (sf)    32.60     13.76    Three/six-month EURIBOR
                                         plus 3.20%

  E      BB- (sf)     19.25      9.48    Three/six-month EURIBOR
                                         plus 5.80%

  F      B- (sf)      13.50      6.48    Three/six-month EURIBOR
                                         plus 8.29%

  Sub.   NR           43.00       N/A    N/A

*The preliminary ratings assigned to the class A-1, A-2, B-1, and
B-2 notes address timely interest and ultimate principal payments.
The preliminary ratings assigned to the class C, D, E, and F notes
address ultimate interest and principal payments.
§Solely for modeling purposes as the actual spreads may vary at
pricing. The payment frequency permanently switches to semiannual
and the index switches to six-month EURIBOR when a frequency switch
event occurs.
EURIBOR--Euro Interbank Offered Rate.
NR--Not rated.
N/A--Not applicable.
Sub.--Subordinated.


TAURUS SP 2021-2: Moody's Affirms Ba3 Rating on EUR23.292MM E Notes
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Ratings has affirmed the ratings of five classes of Notes
issued by Taurus 2021-2 SP DAC:

EUR71.7M (Current outstanding amount EUR43,297,580) Class A Notes,
Affirmed Aa3 (sf); previously on Mar 9, 2021 Definitive Rating
Assigned Aa3 (sf)

EUR9.4M (Current outstanding amount EUR6,149,093) Class B Notes,
Affirmed Aa3 (sf); previously on Mar 9, 2021 Definitive Rating
Assigned Aa3 (sf)

EUR8M (Current outstanding amount EUR5,233,271) Class C Notes,
Affirmed A3 (sf); previously on Mar 9, 2021 Definitive Rating
Assigned A3 (sf)

EUR20.5M (Current outstanding amount EUR13,410,256) Class D Notes,
Affirmed Baa3 (sf); previously on Mar 9, 2021 Definitive Rating
Assigned Baa3 (sf)

EUR23.292M (Current outstanding amount EUR15,236,668) Class E
Notes, Affirmed Ba3 (sf); previously on Mar 9, 2021 Definitive
Rating Assigned Ba3 (sf)

Moody's do not rate the Class X Notes.

RATINGS RATIONALE

The affirmations of the ratings are based on the deleveraging of
the transaction following the partial prepayment of the loan as
part of the extension of the loan and note maturity dates to
September 2027 and 2034 respectively. Combined with the proceeds
from the disposal of a single property, the MDY loan to value ratio
(LTV) reduced to 61.2% from 68.3%. However, the positive impact of
the deleveraging is offset by the increased uncertainty of
repayment of the loan at the new maturity date in 2027.

As part of the loan extension, EUR15 million of the senior and
mezzanine loans were repaid, and EUR6.65 million was paid down on
the notes. Additionally, starting from the November 25, 2024
Interest Payment Date (IPD), a new Cash Sweep mechanism was
implemented. The total surplus used to repay the senior and
mezzanine Loans on the November IPD amounted to EUR3.12 million, of
which Taurus 2021-2 SP DAC received EUR1.39 million.

Moreover, in November 2024, the disposal of one of the properties,
the Inneo property in Sant Joan Despí (Barcelona), further reduced
the loan amount by EUR22.8 million, with Taurus 2021-2 SP DAC
receiving EUR9.96 million.

The performance of the underlying portfolio is overall stable but
with a still elevated vacancy rate of 20.2%.

The ratings of the Class A and Class B Notes are constrained at
Aa3(sf), four notches above the current Spanish government bond
rating of Baa1 with a positive outlook.

Methodology Underlying the Rating Action:

The principal methodology used in these ratings was "Moody's
Approach to Rating EMEA CMBS Transactions" published in May 2021.

Factors that would lead to an upgrade or downgrade of the ratings:

Main factors or circumstances that could lead to a downgrade of the
ratings are generally (i) a decline in the property values backing
the underlying loan, (ii) an increase in default risk assessment,
(iii) changes to the ratings of some transaction counterparties;
and (iv) given the exposure to Spain an increase in sovereign
risk.

Main factors or circumstances that could lead to an upgrade of the
ratings are generally (i) an increase in the property values
backing the underlying loan, (ii) a decrease in the default
probability driven by improving loan performance or decrease in
refinancing risk; and (iii) given the exposure to Spain, a decrease
in sovereign risk.




=========
I T A L Y
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CENTURION NEWCO: S&P Affirms 'B-' ICR, Outlook Negative
-------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'B-' long term issuer credit rating
on IT service provider Centurion Newco SpA (Engineering), and
assigned its 'B-' issue rating to the proposed bond.

The negative outlook reflects S&P's view that Engineering has
limited rating headroom for any operational setbacks and a
relatively weak track record of controlling the exceptional costs
and meeting the budget.

Engineering is refinancing its maturing EUR605 million senior
secured notes and EUR38 million term loan B with a new EUR650
million bond, and extending the maturities of its revolving credit
facility (RCF) and payment-in-kind (PIK) facilities.

S&P said, "We expect the company's FOCF after leases will turn
positive in 2025 despite higher interest burden.   This in our view
would be supported by the company's improving EBITDA margin on the
back of expected diminishing exceptional costs, productivity gains,
and lower capex. Engineering's estimated exceptional costs
decreased to about EUR31 million in 2024 compared with EUR85
million in 2023. Although the majority of the exceptional costs
booked in 2023 was paid out in cash in 2024, suppressing the cash
flow, we think the reduced exceptional costs are an early
indication of management's better ability to control these costs.
Additionally, the company's adjusted EBITDA before provisions and
exceptional costs is steadily increasing on the back of the
company's productivity gains, while the capex has materially
decreased following the wrap-up of its major investments in
vertical software. As a result, we forecast the company's FOCF
after lease payments will be EUR15 million-EUR20 million following
the past two years of cash burn. Nevertheless, we see a risk of
prolonged negative cash flow because of the company's relatively
weak track record of controlling exceptional costs and working
capital volatility, which could lead to a downgrade in the next six
to 12 months.

"The company's business is still growing.   We believe Engineering
will continue to benefit from a growing demand for information
technology (IT) services thanks to evolving technologies and
resilient customer spending on technologies. The company has
established customer relationships across various industries,
supported by its own proprietary software solutions, and formed
strategic partnerships with major cloud and software providers like
Microsoft, Google, SAP, and Oracle. We think these ongoing
relationships and continuous buildup of its vertical software and
digital technology segment will help the company grow 2%-4%
annually in the medium term.

"The negative outlook reflects our view that the company has
limited rating headroom for any operational setbacks and relatively
weak track record of controlling the exceptional costs and meeting
the budget."

S&P could lower the rating in the next six to 12 months if:

-- S&P believes the company's FOCF after leases will likely remain
negative following the quarterly results in 2025;

-- EBITDA to cash interest coverage decreases toward 1x;

-- The company faces liquidity pressure; or

-- S&P considers the capital structure is unsustainable in the
long term.

This could stem from sustained elevated exceptional costs, changing
working capital dynamics, or operational setbacks related to the
acquisitions.

S&P could revise the outlook to stable if the company shows
sustained operational performance improvement, leading to material
deleveraging and positive FOCF after leases starting from 2025.


FIBERCOP SPA: S&P Assigns 'BB+' Issuer Credit Rating, Outlook Neg.
------------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings assigned its 'BB+' long-term issuer credit
rating to FiberCop S.p.A and affirmed its 'BB+' issue-level rating
on the existing senior secured notes, with a recovery rating of '3'
(recovery prospect: 65%).

The ratings are in line with S&P's previous credit assessment of
Optics because it views the company's credit assessment as
unchanged.

Italy-based fixed-line wholesale services provider company Optics
Bidco SpA (Optics) completed a merger of its subsidiary FiberCop
SpA (FiberCop), with FiberCop as the sole surviving entity and
issuer of the company's senior secured notes and senior secured
loans.

With the merger, S&P withdrew its issuer credit rating on Optics;
its debt has been transferred to FiberCop.

The negative outlook reflects S&P's expectation that FiberCop has
no rating headroom compared with its 6.25x maximum leverage trigger
over the forecast period, making it harder for the company to
absorb a deviation from its forecast.

On Dec. 31, 2024, Optics completed its push-down merger between
Optics and FiberCop as part of the transaction between Telecom
Italia SpA (TIM)'s and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P. (KKR).
Following this merger, FiberCop is the sole surviving entity and
Optics ceased to exist. The company's financial statements will be
consolidated at FiberCop, which is also issuing the entity's debt.
There is no major change to the company's business, financials, or
management due to this merger. Consequently, S&P's rating
considerations--including S&P's assessments of the company's
business profile, credit metrics profile, and ratings--are
unchanged.

S&P said, "The negative outlook reflects our expectation that
FiberCop has no rating headroom compared with our 6.25x maximum
leverage trigger over the forecast period, making it harder for the
company to absorb a deviation from our forecast.

"We could lower the rating on FiberCop if we expect S&P Global
Ratings-adjusted debt to EBITDA will sustainably exceed 6.25x
because of weaker-than-expected revenue prospects and underlying
profitability." This could result from:

-- FiberCop having a lower market share or fewer subscribers;

-- Lower average revenue per user than S&P currently expected in
its base case; or

-- A more aggressive financial policy than expected, which would
not reconcile with the virtually no leverage headroom S&P forecasts
for the end of 2025.

S&P could change the outlook to stable if adjusted debt to EBITDA
remains sustainably below 6.25x. This could occur if the company's
earnings exceeded its base case or because of a more conservative
and explicit financial policy commitment.




===============
S L O V A K I A
===============

NOVIS INSURANCE: S&P Lowers ICR to 'CCC-', On CreditWatch Negative
------------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings revised the long-term issuer credit rating on
Slovakia-based Novis Insurance Co. (Novis) to 'CCC-' from 'CCC'.
The rating was separately withdrawn at the issuer's request. At the
time of the withdrawal the rating remained on CreditWatch with
negative implications.

S&P said, "The downgrade reflects our view that the credit
fundamentals have further deteriorated for Novis, because of
substantial net losses in 2023 and expected losses for 2024 that
will impair the company's financial resources over time. It also
reflects the company's continued high sensitivity to policyholder
lapse behavior that will potentially affect its liquidity position.
The CreditWatch with negative implications reflects our view of a
high likelihood of Novis not having the resources to pay all its
financial commitments during 2025 in view to the company's high
reliance on policyholders' behavior such as lapses, and uncertainty
linked to the pending court case.

"In June 2023, the Slovak insurance regulator, the National Bank of
Slovakia (NBS), withdrew Novis' insurance license and prohibited
the company from writing new insurance business. We understand
that, since the withdrawal of Novis' insurance license and the ban
on new business, there has been a significant increase in lapsed
and surrendered policies, particularly in the third quarter of
2023. We understand Novis has fulfilled all policyholder and other
financial obligations since the withdrawal of its insurance license
and lapses have somewhat reduced in 2024 compared to the peak in
the third quarter 2023 at a still high level. However, we think
that the company's cash flow plan for the short term remains highly
sensitive to policyholders' behavior in 2025. The European
Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority recently released a
publication stating that policyholders of Novis may face the risk
of financial losses as they continue to pay premiums to a company
that has no authorization, for which the NBS requested liquidation,
and which is under limited supervision by the NBS.

"In 2023, the company reported a significant net loss of EUR32.4
million reducing reported shareholder equity to about EUR4 million.
We understand that Novis' outstanding tier 2 subordinated
convertible bond (not rated) of about EUR20 million has been
converted into shareholders' equity in 2024. For 2024, we also
assume a significant net loss that could deplete shareholders'
equity further.

"We understand that NBS has petitioned the municipal court in
Bratislava to dissolve Novis and commence liquidation proceedings.
We understand that the municipal court decision to suspend the
liquidation process was confirmed by the appeals court until the
administrative court in Bratislava decides on the claim. The
administrative court's decision is still pending.

"According to our rating definitions, an obligor rated in the 'CCC'
range depends on favorable business, financial, and economic
conditions to meet its financial commitments. In the event of
adverse business, financial, or economic conditions, the obligor is
unlikely to have the capacity to meet its financial commitments."




=========
S P A I N
=========

DEOLEO SA: S&P Assigns 'B-' Rating on EUR60MM Term Loan B
---------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings assigned its 'B-' issue rating to the EUR60
million term loan B (TLB) to be issued by Deoleo Financial Ltd.,
financial subsidiary to Deoleo Group, a global producer of olive
oil. The recovery rating on the proposed notes is '3', reflecting
its expectation of meaningful recovery prospects (50%-70%; rounded
estimate: 50%) in the event of payment default.

The refinancing pack includes a EUR60 million TLB, EUR65 million
second-lien term loan C (TLC), and EUR35 million super senior
revolving credit facility (SSRCF) that is fully drawn post-closing.
Cash proceeds from the new debt, together with cash on balance
sheet, will be used solely for refinancing purposes. Namely, Deoleo
plans to repay the EUR58 million outstanding TLB and the EUR82
million outstanding TLC, and replenish the existing revolving
credit facility that is currently EUR20 million drawn. The new TLB
will rank above the TLC and below the SSRCF.

S&P said, "Our rating on Deoleo S.A., the parent of Deoleo, is
supported by our forecast that the group will continue to post
positive free operating cash flow in 2025 thanks to good cash
conversion, despite the burden of high interest expenses. We also
continue to see the group deleveraging during 2025 on the back of
an improving operational environment, such that S&P Global
Ratings-adjusted debt to EBITDA improves to about 5.0x in 2025 from
about 6.3x in 2024."




=====================
S W I T Z E R L A N D
=====================

IXS HOLDINGS: Moody's Raises CFR to 'B3', Outlook Stable
--------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Ratings upgraded the ratings of IXS Holdings, Inc. (IXS),
including the corporate family rating to B3 from Caa1, the
probability of default rating to B3-PD from Caa1-PD and the backed
senior secured first lien term loan rating to B3 from Caa1. The
outlook is stable.

The upgrade of the ratings reflects Moody's expectation that recent
improvement in IXS' credit metrics, including lower leverage and
positive free cash flow, will be sustained. Moody's estimate that
earnings growth will contribute to declining debt-to-EBITDA and
sustained free cash flow.

The stable outlook reflects Moody's expectation that IXS will grow
revenue by 5% per year over the next 12-18 months due to the growth
in its Ground Effects segment because of higher volume and
increased price. Moody's also expect EBIT margin to improve over
the next 12-18 months, driven by operating efficiencies. Moody's
forecast that the company will maintain adequate liquidity and
financial policies that will support good financial flexibility.

Governance was a key consideration for this rating action because
current financial strategies and risk management practices have
resulted in lower financial leverage, positive free cash flow and
improved liquidity. The credit impact score (CIS) was revised to
CIS-4 from CIS-5 to reflect Moody's expectation that the improved
financial profile will be maintained. The CIS-4 indicates that the
rating is lower than it would have been if ESG risk exposures did
not exist.

RATINGS RATIONALE

IXS' B3 CFR reflects the company's strong market position as a
leader in upfit services and protective coating solutions to the
automotive and industrial markets. Demand is supported by
increasing build rates of light trucks and SUVs as a percentage of
total vehicle production in North America. IXS also benefits from
counter cyclical growth away from automotive light vehicle
production through its aftermarket spray-on pickup truck bedliner
business and industrial coatings business.

However, the competitive profile is limited by products that are
highly dependent on consumer discretionary spending. IXS has high
customer and product concentration with limited geographic
diversity as the majority of its revenue is generated in the US
from its top three customers.

Moody's expect debt-to-LTM EBITDA to decline toward 4.3x and
EBITDA-to-interest to increase to 2.6x over the next 12-18 months,
driven by higher earnings. Revenue growth will be driven by
increased penetration of the company's factory installed spray-on
bedliner at its original equipment manufacturer (OEM) customers,
program expansions with its OEM customers and additional operating
facilities to support its customers. Moody's also estimate that
EBIT margin will improve to 10% over the next 12-18 months, owing
to operating leverage from increased production, deflation in some
production costs and cost and expense controls.

IXS' liquidity is adequate, and is supported by Moody's expectation
for free cash flow of more than $40 million over the next 12
months. Liquidity is further supported by availability on the
company's $140 million asset based lending (ABL) facility expiring
March 2029. Net of drawings of $43 million and about $1.9 million
in letters of credit at the end of June 2024, the company had
approximately $73 million available on the ABL.

FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS

The ratings could be upgraded if debt-to-EBITDA is sustained below
5.0x and EBITDA-to-interest is sustained above 3.0x. An upgrade
would also hinge on evidence of sustained improvement in liquidity,
including less reliance on the ABL and sustained positive free cash
flow.

The ratings could be downgraded if debt-to-EBITDA is sustained
above 6.0x, EBITDA-to-interest is approaching 2.0x or liquidity
deteriorates, including sustained negative free cash flow,
significantly reduced ABL availability or tight covenant
compliance. The ratings could also be downgraded if IXS implements
an increasingly aggressive financial policy, including a debt
funded shareholder distribution.

The principal methodology used in these ratings was Automotive
Suppliers published in December 2024.

IXS Holdings, Inc. provides vehicle uplift services and coating
solutions that enable automotive original equipment manufacturers
(OEMs) and automotive aftermarket dealers to customize/accessorize
vehicles and industrial OEMs to protect and preserve parts and
equipment. The company operates through two divisions, Ground
Effects which provides vehicle uplift services for automotive OEMs
including the application of spray-on pickup truck bedliners,
installation of factory options and functional external accessories
and IXS Coatings which is an aftermarket retailer of spray-on
bedliners (LINE-X) and industrial coatings. Revenue was
approximately $803 million for the 12 months ended June 30, 2024.

IXS has been owned by private equity sponsor Clearlake Capital
Group, L.P. following a leveraged buyout in March 2020.


SELECTA GROUP: S&P Cuts ICR to 'CCC-' on Delayed Interest Payment
-----------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings lowered its long-term corporate credit rating on
Selecta Group AG to 'CCC-' from 'CCC+' and placed the ratings on
CreditWatch with negative implications. S&P also lowered all its
issue ratings on the group's debt by two notches and placed them on
CreditWatch negative.

S&P said, "The CreditWatch negative placement reflects that we
could downgrade Selecta in the coming weeks at the end of original
30-day grace period, expiring on Feb. 1, 2025, if it does not meet
the interest payment, if it announces that it does not intend to
not pay the interest due in cash, or if it announces other
restructuring plans.

"The downgrade reflects our view that the likelihood of Selecta
selectively defaulting under our definition has significantly
increased, and it may default within the next few weeks.   We view
non-payment of interest beyond the 30-calendar-day grace period as
a default on the obligation. Selecta's announcement indicating the
extension of its initial 30-day grace period (expiring Feb. 1,
2025) -- with respect to interest payments due on its EUR760
million first-lien notes--raises questions as to how likely it is
to meet its debt obligation. The semi-annual interest payment of
EUR30 million was due on Jan. 2, 2025. Our rating action is based
on limited publicly available information, as the terms and tenor
of extension of the grace period is not known to us.

"In addition to the new EUR50 million facility, Selecta had a cash
balance of EUR73 million, as of Dec. 31, 2024. While the company
has available funds to make the interest payment during the grace
period, the decision to extend its grace period and delay making
its interest payments indicates that it is unwilling to make the
interest payment in the original 30-day grace period, and that
Selecta might engage in an exchange offer that we would deem as a
selective default.

"We have revised our management and governance assessment to
negative.   This reflects our view of deficiencies in Selecta's
risk management and protection of creditor interests, as
demonstrated by the company's delay of its interest payment on the
first-lien notes, despite having available liquidity. Our
assessment also reflects selective disclosure and lack of
transparency of financial information.

"Selecta's significant near-term debt maturities further intensify
refinancing risks amid tightened liquidity. While the new EUR50
million credit facility raised on Jan. 21 bolsters available
liquidity, we have revised our liquidity assessment to less than
adequate, given near-term maturities and persistent negative free
operating cash flow (FOCF). We now view the revolving credit
facility (RCF) as current and therefore exclude it from our
liquidity sources as it matures in January 2026. In addition,
Selecta faces heightened refinancing risk, given the upcoming debt
maturities in 2026. Since Selecta's first-lien debt is turning
current in less than three months, we believe the company is
dependent on favorable business, financial, and economic conditions
to meet its financial commitments.

"We understand that Selecta has been exploring options to refinance
its current debt structure and is in discussions with its financial
stakeholders, however its recent actions suggest to us that this
may take the form of a distressed exchange."

Adjusted debt as of 2023 now comprises:

-- EUR57 million under the EUR150 million RCF due January 2026;
-- EUR761 million first-lien notes maturing in April 2026;
-- EUR310 million second-lien notes maturing in July 2026;
-- EUR156 million lease liabilities;
-- Factoring liabilities of EUR38 million; and
-- EUR585 million in preferred shares held by financial sponsor,
KKR, and the senior secured noteholders, which S&P treats as debt.

Weaker S&P Global Ratings-adjusted EBITDA margins and negative
FOCF, driven by macroeconomic headwinds, have continued to erode
credit quality.   As a result of inflationary pressures,
unfavorable weather, and geographical tensions, European economic
growth remained pressured, leading to lower consumer spending,
which in turn resulted in Selecta's weaker operating performance.
In addition, driven by higher coffee prices, coupled with
regulatory changes in Netherlands, revenue is expected to have
declined by 4%-5% in 2024, further resulting in our adjusted EBITDA
margins contracting by around 100 basis points (bps)-120 bps
compared with 2023. In addition to weaker revenue growth, EBITDA
margins were also weakened by nonrecurring costs related to
investments on turnaround initiatives in selected markets. As a
result, S&P expects negative FOCF (before lease payments) of about
EUR40 million in 2024, principally because of weaker operating
performance, along with elevated interest expenses and
higher-than-expected working capital outflows. This shortfall has
been funded via further drawdowns under the EUR150 million RCF.

The CreditWatch negative placement reflects the possibility of a
downgrade in the coming weeks at the end of initial 30-day grace
period expiring on Feb. 1, 2025 if the interest payment is not
made, or if Selecta announces that it does not intend to not pay
the due interest in cash or other make restructuring plans.

S&P would resolve the CreditWatch if Selecta either pays the
interest due, announces restructuring plans, or the original 30-day
grace period expires.

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) credit factors for this
change in credit rating/outlook and/or CreditWatch status:

-- Governance structure
-- Risk management, culture, and oversight
-- Other governance factors




=============
U K R A I N E
=============

UKRAINIAN RAILWAYS: S&P Raises LT ICR to 'CCC-' on Coupon Payments
------------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings raised to 'CCC-' from 'CC' its long-term issuer
credit rating on Ukrainian Railways JSC (UR).

The negative outlook reflects high risks to UR's debt service
payments, given its weak liquidity position and high uncertainty
regarding effects of the war on UR's operations.

The rating action follows UR's payment of its two coupons due in
January 2025 for Eurobonds 2026 and 2028. On Dec. 31, 2024, UR
announced that the required consent from its Eurobonds noteholders
to defer all coupon payments on the two issues of U.S.
dollar-denominated Eurobonds (2026 notes and 2028 notes) by 12
months was not received. Despite our expectation that UR would not
proceed with coupon payments in January 2025 because of the current
harsh operating environment and high liquidity needs to cover
salaries and urgent maintenance, the company has fully paid the
coupons due on Jan. 9, 2025, and Jan. 15, 2025, one for each bond.
S&P said, "We understand that this decision was based on the
further progress in discussions for UR's tariffs increase (subject
to the authorities' approval, as well as the consensus of industry
representatives). The company now has improved expectations of the
implementation of the tariff increase in 2025, although no
agreement has been reached yet, and the specific timing and
magnitude of this increase remain uncertain. We believe the
material tariffs increase could somewhat strengthen UR's ability to
generate cash flows. However, this could also hit its already weak
cargo volumes as not all clients would be willing to pay high
tariffs. Considering the above, we believe UR's immediate default
risk has eased, but not gone away."

S&P said, "We believe UR is likely to have to restructure its
payment schedule or default on its debt payments within the next
six to 12 months because, without additional government
intervention or significant cuts to operating expenditure, existing
liquidity will be depleted to maintain operations. Although we
acknowledge that UR's upcoming maturity payments in 2025 are low
(around $45 million) and that the next substantial payment (around
$703 million) falls due in July 2026, we expect its cash position
to be insufficient to cover ongoing war costs and financial
obligations without any additional funding or debt restructuring.
Based on the preliminary 2024 operational results, we understand
that volumes from UR's key cargo (grain, iron ore, and coal)
declined materially in second-half 2024 and similar volumes are
expected in first-half 2025. In addition, there are high
uncertainties related to the military aggression and its impact on
UR's freight transportation volumes, and the costs related to
urgent repairing of the assets.

"We note a high degree of uncertainty about the extent, outcome,
and consequences of the Russia-Ukraine war. Irrespective of the
duration of military hostilities, related risks are likely to
remain in place for some time. As the situation evolves, we will
update our assumptions and estimates accordingly."

The negative outlook reflects the high risks to UR's debt service
payments, given its weak liquidity position and high uncertainty
regarding the war's effects on UR's operations.

S&P said, "We could lower the rating if we deem UR is unlikely to
make debt payments in accordance with its maturity schedule in the
next six-12 months. This could occur if the operating environment
remains challenging and uncertain because of the war, reducing UR's
ability to generate cash flows to repay its financial obligations.
We continue to monitor the risk of severe damage to UR's assets
resulting from the war."

A positive rating action is highly unlikely at this stage.




===========================
U N I T E D   K I N G D O M
===========================

CAMBRIDGE SOLAR: Begbies Traynor Named as Administrators
--------------------------------------------------------
Cambridge Solar Ltd was placed into administration proceedings in
the The High Court of Justice Business & Property Courts of England
and Wales, Court Number: CR-2024-006979, and Jeremy Karr and Simon
John Killick of Begbies Traynor (Central) LLP, were appointed as
administrators on Jan. 17, 2025.  

Cambridge Solar engages in electrical installation.

Its registered office is at Future Business Centre, Kings Hedges
Road, Cambridge, CB4 2HY.

The joint administrators can be reached at:

               Jeremy Karr
               Simon John Killick
               Begbies Traynor (Central) LLP
               31st Floor, 40 Bank Street
               London, E14 5NR

Any person who requires further information may contact:

               Tom Huxley
               Begbies Traynor (London) LLP
               E-mail: Tom.Huxley@btguk.com
               Tel No: 020 7516 1500


INTERACTIVE EDUCATION: SFP Restructuring Named as Administrators
----------------------------------------------------------------
Interactive Education Solutions Limited was placed into
administration proceedings in the High Court of Justice Business
and Property Courts of England and Wales Court Number:
CR-2025-000348, and David Kemp and Richard Hunt of SFP
Restructuring Limited, were appointed as administrators on Jan. 20,
2025.  

Interactive Education engages in technology service activities and
educational support services.

Its registered office is at SFP, 9 Ensign House, Admirals Way,
Marsh Wall, London, E14 9XQ.

Its principal trading address is at Ground floor, Lebra House, 2
Upper Zoar Street, Wolverhampton, WV3 0AL

The joint administrators can be reached at:

                David Kemp
                Richard Hunt
                SFP Restructuring Limited
                9 Ensign House
                Admirals Way, Marsh Wall
                London, E14 9XQ

For further details, please contact David Kemp at 0207-538-2222


LONDON COMMUNITY: PKF Littlejohn Named as Administrators
--------------------------------------------------------
London Community Credit Union Limited was placed into
administration proceedings in the High Court of Justice, Business
and Property Courts of England and Wales, Insolvency and Companies
List (ChD), Court Number: CR-2025-000359, and James Sleight and
Stratford Hamilton of PKF Littlejohn Advisoy Limited were appointed
as administrators on Jan. 22, 2025.  

London Community is a Credit Union.

Its registered office is c/o PKF Littlejohn Advisory Limited, at
3rd Floor, One Park Row, Leeds, LS1 5HN.

Its principal trading address is at 473 Bethnal Green Road, London
E2 9QH.

The joint administrators can be reached at:

          James Sleight
          PKF Littlejohn Advisoy Limited
          3rd Floor, One Park Row
          Leeds, LS1 5HN

               -- and --

          Stratford Hamilton
          PKF Littlejohn Advisoy Limited
          15 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf
          London E14 4HD

For further details, contact:

          Michael Sullivan
          (case administrator)
          Tel No: 0113 244 5141
          Email: advisory@pkf-l.com


PRAESIDIAD GROUP: Moody's Withdraws 'C' Corporate Family Rating
---------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Ratings has withdrawn Praesidiad Group Limited's ratings,
including its corporate family rating at C and its probability of
default rating at C-PD. Prior to the withdrawal the ratings were on
review for upgrade.

RATINGS RATIONALE

Moody's have decided to withdraw the rating(s) following a review
of the issuer's request to withdraw its rating(s).

COMPANY PROFILE

Headquartered in the United Kingdom, Praesidiad is a provider of
outdoor perimeter security systems. In 2023, Praesidiad generated
revenue and Moody's-adjusted EBITDA of EUR247 million and EUR25
million respectively. The group is ultimately controlled by a
consortium of lenders that took over from the Carlyle Group in the
course of the recent restructuring.


REP PRODUCTIONS 7: Sanderlings LLP Named as Administrators
----------------------------------------------------------
Rep Productions 7 Ltd was placed into administration proceedings in
the High Court of Justice Birmingham Business & Property Courts,
Court Number: CR-2025-BHM-000030, and Andrew Fender and Sandra
Fender of Sanderlings LLP were appointed as administrators on Jan.
24, 2025.  

Rep Productions is into motion picture production activities.

Its registered office and principal trading is at C/O Kingsley
Maybrook, Unitec House, 2 Albert Place, London, N3 1QB.

The joint administrators can be reached at:

        Andrew Fender
        Sandra Fender
        Sanderlings LLP
        Sanderlings
        Becketts Farm
        Alcester Road
        Birmingham B47 6AJ

Further details, contact:

        Laura Clarke
        Email: info@sanderlings.co.uk
        Tel No: 01564-700-052


RYEDALE CARAVAN: PKF Smith Named as Administrators
--------------------------------------------------
Ryedale Caravan & Leisure Limited was placed into administration
proceedings in the High Court of Justice, Business & Property
Courts in Birmingham, Court Number: 000011 of 2025, and Dean
Anthony Nelson and Brett Lee Barton of PKF Smith Cooper, were
appointed as administrators on Jan. 24, 2025.  

Ryedale Caravan is a caravan and motorhome distributor.

Its registered office and principal trading address is at Ashby
Road Central, Shepshed, Loughborough, LE12 9EF.

The joint administrators can be reached at:

        Brett Lee Barton
        Dean Anthony Nelson
        PKF Smith Cooper
        Cornerblock 2 Cornwall Street
        Birmingham B3 2DX
        Email: brett.barton@pkfsmithcooper.com
               Dean.Nelson@pkfsmithcooper.com
        Tel No: 0121-236-6789

For further information, contact:

       Matthew Hill
       PKF Smith Cooper
       Tel No: 0121 236 6789
       Email: matthew.hill@pkfsmithcooper.com
       Cornerblock, 2 Cornwall Street
       Birmingham, B3 2DX


THAMES WATER: Moody's Cuts CFR to 'Caa3' & Alters Outlook to Stable
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Ratings has downgraded to Caa3 from Caa1 the corporate
family rating as well as to Ca-PD from Caa2-PD the probability of
default rating of Thames Water Utilities Ltd. (Thames Water).
Concurrently, Moody's have also downgraded the backed senior
secured debt (referred to as Class A under its finance documents)
ratings of Thames Water's guaranteed finance subsidiary Thames
Water Utilities Finance Plc (TWUF) to Caa3 from Caa1 and affirmed
its subordinated debt (referred to as Class B under its finance
documents) ratings at C. The outlook on Thames Water and TWUF was
changed to stable from negative.

The rating action follows the publication of the final
determination of tariffs, cost allowances and returns for the
regulatory period running from April 01, 2025 to March 31, 2030
(known as AMP8), published by Ofwat on December 19, 2024.[1]

RATINGS RATIONALE

The downgrade reflects Moody's view that the final determination,
even if improved from the draft published in July 2024, does not
provide an attractive risk-return balance for existing or new
investors. This may deter new equity funding and increases the
likelihood of a more severe haircut to senior debt than embedded in
the previous ratings, either through a potential future
creditor-led debt restructuring or one that is imposed as part of a
special administration process, should the company meet the
criteria for special administration to be called. The Caa3 CFR also
reflects the high likelihood of a near-term distressed exchange and
the risk of losses being imposed on creditors under an ongoing
initial debt restructuring process, which is expected to introduce,
among other things, an extension of maturities for all existing
debt by two years. An amendment or extension of credit terms that
results in a loss relative to the original promise to pay is a
distressed exchange and constitutes a default by Moody's
definition.

On December 19, 2024, Ofwat published its final determination for
AMP8. Thames Water received one of the largest cuts to its cost
request (16.4%) and retains the most pronounced penalty exposure.
It is also the only company, whose business plan remained
inadequate carrying a 30 basis point (bps) penalty on the cost of
equity (estimated at GBP141 million in total). The final settlement
increases the likelihood of an appeal to the Competition and
Markets Authority (CMA). Absent a more favourable CMA
redetermination, which may not be concluded before the end of 2025,
Thames Water will be exposed to material ongoing operational
underperformance through cost overspend and operational penalties.
Moody's believe that this will deter equity interest and may
require meaningful haircuts to senior debt to achieve a sustainable
capital structure.

Under Ofwat's final determination, Thames Water's overall AMP8 cost
allowance is GBP20.5 billion, compared with a GBP24.5 billion ask
(both after adjustment for frontier shift and real price effects).
The base cost allowance (post-adjustments) is GBP12.3 billion, a
GBP2 billion or 13.9% cut from the GBP14.3 billion request. The cut
largely reflects that Ofwat rejected the company's evidence as poor
or not having a strong engineering rationale. Enhancement
allowances are GBP8.2 billion, also cut by around GBP2 billion or
19.8% from a GBP10.2 billion request (post-adjustments). A large
part of enhancement cuts relate to requests that Ofwat considered
have been previously funded or funded through base cost allowances.
The GBP8.2 billion enhancement allowances include separate gated
allowances for GBP1.3 billion primarily to improve asset health,
GBP1.1 billion contingent allowances related to additional large
schemes and strategic resource options, and GBP1.2 billion separate
delivery mechanisms.

Based on the revised performance targets and incentive rates at
final determinations, Moody's estimate that Thames Water will face
around GBP76 million of annual penalties on average under the
outcome delivery incentives (ODI) framework, if it performed in
line with its representations. The largest penalties would be
incurred for sewer flooding (internal and external), total and
serious pollution events as well as water supply interruptions. The
estimated penalties would translate into a 78bps negative impact on
annual return on regulatory equity, the largest level in the
sector. Moody's expect that Thames Water would incur an additional
GBP20-30 million of penalties on service performance measures, if
performance remained the weakest in the sector.

The final determination allowed appointee return is 4.03%
(CPIH-deflated, compared with 3.72% at draft determinations and
2.96% in the current period). It remains below the company's
request of 4.6% at the draft determination representation stage.

Overall, Thames Water's business risk remains supported by the
company's position as a monopoly provider of essential water and
sewerage services. However, the Caa3 CFR remains constrained by
Moody's expectation of a near-term distressed exchange and the risk
of losses being imposed on creditors. Moody's currently estimate
that the risk of ultimate creditor losses could be higher than 10%,
the maximum loss given default implied by the previous Caa1
rating.

The senior secured Caa3 rating of the Class A bonds issued by
Thames Water's finance subsidiary, in line with the CFR, reflects
their senior ranking in the cashflow waterfall and after any
enforcement of security. However, it also takes into account
additional super-senior obligations, including derivative
liabilities with a mark-to-market value of around GBP1.9 billion
(excluding credit value adjustment) at September 2024, as well as
the likelihood of additional liquidity in an amount of GBP1.5-3.0
billion to be provided on a super-senior basis, the servicing of
which could further reduce cash flows available to service Class A
creditors.

The C rating of the Class B bonds reflects Moody's expectation of a
heightened expected loss severity for the Class B lenders, given
their deeply subordinated position in the cash flow waterfall.

LIQUIDITY

Thames Water's liquidity is inadequate. As at September 30, 2024,
the company had committed liquidity of GBP1.5 billion (GBP1.1
billion cash and GBP0.4 billion undrawn under revolving credit
facilities). The undrawn revolving credit facilities would be
cancelled if the current debt restructuring process is successful
and Thames Water has agreed not to draw these without the consent
of the relevant lenders ahead of its implementation. This liquidity
is only sufficient to allow meeting all liquidity needs into March
2025. An initial debt restructuring, expected to conclude in
February 2025, would, if approved, (1) provide up to GBP3.0 billion
super-senior liquidity, with the first GBP1.5 billion backstopped
by creditors; and (2) extend all debt maturities by two years,
deferring GBP3.2 billion of maturities currently due by February
2027. However, the company will only establish a more sustainable
capital structure and funding position after a second debt
restructuring, expected to take place later this year and involving
the raise of new equity.

The current restructuring plan is contested in court by the
company's Class B creditors, which are offering an alternative
liquidity proposal. Should the initial proposal fail and no
alternative agreement be reached before the end of March 2025,
Moody's expect the company would enter into a standstill under its
finance documentation. A standstill would lead to significant
restrictions in capital spending and Moody's believe would increase
the likelihood of Thames Water having to enter into special
administration.

RATING OUTLOOK

Thames Water's outlook is stable reflecting Moody's expectation of
a near-term default as well as that it will take time to establish
a more sustainable capital structure, which will ultimately
determine recovery for senior lenders. However, the currently
expected recovery rate is unlikely to change in the short term.

FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS

An upgrade of the ratings is unlikely in the near term. However,
upward pressure could arise in the medium to long term if there was
a substantial deleveraging, either as a result of a significant
equity injection or following a debt restructuring process.

Thames Water's ratings, specifically its CFR or senior secured
Class A debt ratings, could be downgraded further if creditors
incurred more significant losses than embedded within current
ratings.

LIST OF AFFECTED RATINGS

Issuer: Thames Water Utilities Ltd.

Downgrades:

LT Corporate Family Ratings, Downgraded to Caa3 from Caa1

Probability of Default, Downgraded to Ca-PD from Caa2-PD

Outlook Actions:

Outlook, Changed to Stable from Negative

Issuer: Thames Water Utilities Finance Plc

Affirmations:

Backed Subordinate Medium-Term Note Program, Affirmed (P)C

Backed Subordinate Regular Bond/Debenture, Affirmed C

Downgrades:

Backed Senior Secured Medium-Term Note Program, Downgraded to
(P)Caa3 from (P)Caa1

Backed Senior Secured Regular Bond/Debenture, Downgraded to Caa3
from Caa1

Outlook Actions:

Outlook, Changed to Stable from Negative

PRINCIPAL METHODOLOGY

The principal methodology used in these ratings was Regulated Water
Utilities published in August 2023.

Thames Water is the largest of the ten main water and sewerage
companies in England and Wales by both RCV (GBP20 billion at March
2024) and number of customers served. The company provides drinking
water to around nine million customers and sewerage services to
around 15 million customers in London and the Thames Valley.


TOGETHER ASSET 2023-1ST2: S&P Assigns 'BB+(sf)' Rating on F Notes
-----------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'AAA (sf)', 'AAA (sf)', 'AA+ (sf)',
'AA- (sf)', 'A (sf)', 'BBB (sf)' and 'BB+ (sf)' credit ratings on
Together Asset Backed Securitisation 2023-1ST2 PLC's class A, A
loan, B, C-Dfrd, D-Dfrd, E-Dfrd, and F-Dfrd notes, respectively.

There has been a deterioration in the transaction's performance
since closing. Total arrears currently stand at 6.99%, up from
3.90% at closing. Arrears of greater than or equal to 90 days
currently stand at 2.74%, compared with 0.00% at closing.

Of the pool, 1.6% is classified as being defaulted. Given the low
weighted-average indexed current-loan-to-value (CLTV) ratio of
52.5% and the high recovery rate observed on the Together book, S&P
expects any losses to be limited in size and to occur after 12
months as these loans go through the repossession process. Both
total arrears and severe arrears are below our nonconforming RMBS
index for post-2014 originations, where total arrears currently
stand at 10.1% and severe arrears stand at 7.0%.

Since closing, the weighted-average foreclosure frequency (WAFF)
has increased at all rating levels, reflecting the higher arrears.
The elevated arrears also reduce the seasoning benefit that the
pool receives, which further increases the WAFF.

S&P said, "We have reduced our originator adjustment since closing.
The originator adjustment at closing in part reflected our view of
a future deterioration in arrears for the securitized assets.
Because the arrears that we previously projected have materialized,
we have reduced the originator adjustment accordingly. It continues
to reflect our expectations of future collateral performance.

"On May 17, 2024 we reduced our base foreclosure frequency
assumptions at all rating levels to the 'B' from 'AA+' rating
level."

There has been a minor reduction in the weighted-average loss
severity (WALS) at all rating levels, driven by a modest decrease
in the weighted-average CLTV ratio since closing.

The required credit coverage has increased at all rating levels.

  Table 1

  Portfolio WAFF and WALS
                                    Base foreclosure frequency
                                                 component for
                                               an archetypical
                                    Credit       U.K. mortgage
  Rating level  WAFF (%)  WALS (%)  coverage (%)  loan pool (%)

  AAA           20.81     32.48      6.76          12.00
  AA            15.83     25.89      4.10           8.00
  A             13.32     16.03      2.14           6.00
  BBB           10.82     11.04      1.19           4.00
  BB             8.31      7.94      0.66           2.00  
  B              7.68      5.41      0.42           1.50

  WAFF--Weighted-average foreclosure frequency.
  WALS--Weighted-average loss severity.

S&P said, "Credit enhancement for the notes has increased slightly,
driven by prepayments and the transaction's sequential
amortization. At the same time, for our driving cash flow runs, we
excluded defaulted loans from the pool and applied recovery
benefits in our cash flow analysis at a rate of 1-WALS at all
rating levels. As such, the current level of credit enhancement for
the rated notes is sufficient to withstand the ratings and so we
affirmed our ratings on the class A, A loan, B, C-Dfrd, D-Dfrd, and
E-Dfrd notes."

The affirmation on the class C-Dfrd notes also considers additional
cash flow sensitivities, as well as qualitative factors such as the
transaction's overall performance.

S&P said, "For the class F-Dfrd notes, we have performed
sensitivities where we have reduced our high prepayment stress
based on historical data received from the originator, historical
data from previous Together first-lien transactions that we have
rated, and the pool's interest revision date distribution. Based on
the results of these cash flow sensitivities, we affirmed our 'BB+
(sf)' rating on this class of notes.

"There are no caps on the ratings from our operational risk, legal
risk, and counterparty risk analysis."

Macroeconomic forecasts and forward-looking analysis

S&P said, "We expect U.K. inflation to remain above the Bank of
England's 2% target in 2025 and forecast the year-on-year change in
house prices in Q4 2025 to be 2.3%.

"We consider the borrowers in this transaction to be nonconforming
and as such generally less resilient to inflationary pressure than
prime borrowers. At the same time, 49% of the borrowers are
currently paying a floating rate of interest and so have been
affected by interest rates that are significantly higher than the
historical lows we have observed.

"Given our current macroeconomic forecasts and forward-looking view
of the U.K. residential mortgage market, we have performed
additional sensitivities relating to higher levels of defaults due
to increased arrears. We have also performed additional
sensitivities with extended recovery timings due to the delays we
have observed in repossession owing to court backlogs in the U.K.
and the repossession grace period announced by the U.K. government
under the Mortgage Charter.

"We therefore ran eight scenarios with increased defaults and
higher loss severities of up to 30%. The sensitivity analysis
results indicate a deterioration that is in line with the credit
stability considerations in our rating definitions.

"While there are failures in the sensitivity to extended recovery
timings, these failures are limited in both size and the number of
failing scenarios. We do not expect the recovery timings to be
elevated for the transaction's life."

Together Asset Backed Securitisation 2023-1ST2 PLC is backed by a
pool of first-lien mortgage loans, both owner-occupied and BTL,
secured on properties in the U.K. and originated by Together
Personal Finance Ltd. and Together Commercial Finance Ltd.


TOGETHER ASSET 2025-2ND1: S&P Assigns 'B' Rating on F-Dfrd Notes
----------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings assigned preliminary credit ratings to Together
Asset Backed Securitisation 2025-2ND1 PLC's class A notes and class
B-Dfrd to F-Dfrd notes. At closing the issuer will also issue
unrated class Z-Dfrd notes and residual certificates.

This is a static RMBS transaction, which securitizes a provisional
portfolio of £286.3 million second-lien mortgage loans, both
owner-occupied and buy-to-let, secured on properties in the U.K.

Together Personal Finance Ltd. and, Together Commercial Finance
Ltd. originated the loans in the pool between 2016 and 2024.

S&P considers the collateral to be nonconforming based on the
prevalence of loans to complex borrowers to whom high street banks
typically do not provide mortgages.

Credit enhancement for the rated notes consists of subordination.

Liquidity support for the class A and B-Dfrd notes is in the form
of a liquidity facility and an amortizing liquidity reserve fund.
The liquidity facility will be available at closing and after the
step-up date the reserve fund will be in place. Principal can also
be used to cure interest shortfalls on all the tranches when they
become the most senior.

There are no rating constraints in the transaction under S&P's
counterparty, operational risk, or structured finance sovereign
risk criteria.

  Preliminary ratings

  Class   Prelim. Rating   Class size (%)

  A         AAA (sf)       72.00
  B-Dfrd*   AA- (sf)       10.50
  C-Dfrd*   A (sf)          5.75
  D-Dfrd*   BBB (sf)        4.25
  E-Dfrd*   BB (sf)         3.00
  F-Dfrd*   B (sf)          2.50
  Z-Dfrd*   NR              2.00
  RC1       N/A              N/A
  RC2       N/A              N/A

  NR--Not rated.
  N/A--Not applicable.


VIKING RESOURCES: Quantuma Advisory Named as Administrators
-----------------------------------------------------------
Viking Resources Limited was placed into administration proceedings
in Business and Property Courts of England and Wales, Insolvency &
Companies List (ChD), Court Number: CR-2025-000205, and Andrew
Watling and Duncan Beat of Quantuma Advisory Limited were appointed
as administrators on Jan. 24, 2025.  

Viking Resources engags in the activities of employment placement
agencies.

Its registered office is at 1 West Station Yard, Spital Road,
Maldon, CM9 6TR and it is in the process of being changed to Office
D, Beresford House, Town Quay, Southampton, SO14 2AQ.

Its principal trading address is at 1 West Station Yard, Spital
Road, Maldon, Essex, CM9 6TW.

The joint administrators can be reached at:

          Andrew Watling
          Duncan Beat
          Quantuma Advisory Limited
          Office D, Beresford House
          Town Quay, Southampton
          SO14 2AQ

For further details, please contact

          Emily Hayward
          Tel No: 023 80226464
          Email: emily.hayward@quantuma.com


VUE ENTERTAINMENT: S&P Affirms CCC+ ICR & Alters Outlook to Stable
------------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings revised its outlook to stable from negative and
affirmed its 'CCC+' long-term issuer credit rating on U.K.-based
cinema operator Vue Entertainment International Ltd. (Vue).

S&P said, "We also affirmed our 'B' issue rating on Vue's EUR64
million and EUR95 million super-senior facilities due June 2027,
our 'B-' issue rating on the EUR127 million 1.5-lien senior secured
loan due December 2027, and our 'CCC-' issue rating on the EUR229
million senior term loan due December 2027.

"The stable outlook reflects our expectation that the company's
organic revenue growth and prudent cost management will drive FOCF
after leases to breakeven in fiscal 2025, while maintaining
adequate liquidity.

"The outlook revision reflects our expectation for the company's
FOCF to recover on the back of improving box office performance.
Despite the lingering effects of the 2023 U.S. actors and writers
strikes, cinema admissions, box office, and Vue's overall revenue
and cashflow in fiscal 2024 were stronger than we previously
expected thanks to very strong performance of a few major titles in
summer 2024. Vue reported just a 3% decline in admissions in fiscal
2024 versus our previous expectations of a 10% drop. This
incorporates the success of Inside Out 2 (the highest-grossing
animated film of all time, earning $1.7 billion globally),
Wolverine & Deadpool, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Gladiator II,
Wicked, Moana 2. and other strong titles. Germany's market was the
weakest performing, with 9.2% lower admissions and 11.7% lower
gross box office due to audience's stronger preference for local
titles, which did not perform as well as international titles, and
due to Germany's economy slowdown in 2024. At the same time, those
poor results were balanced by a less material decline in the U.K.,
Ireland, and Italy, where market admissions declined by around 2%
backed by stronger presence of international titles and stronger
performance of local titles, like Paddington in Peru in the U.K.
This resulted in Vue's fiscal 2024 revenue declining by only 2.4%
versus our previous expectation of a 6.4% decline. A material
increase in energy and staff costs and exceptional expenses put
additional pressure on the company's fiscal 2024 EBITDA, which
decreased by about 20% compared to fiscal 2023. At the same time,
fiscal 2024 FOCF after leases outflow was around minus £34
million, better than our previous expectation of minus £100
million. This supported Vue's cash levels and liquidity position
and provides a sufficient buffer for the next 12 months. We expect
revenue and EBITDA to recover in fiscal 2025-2026 on the back of a
normalized release schedule and an even stronger slate of film
releases in 2026. We believe this will lead Vue's FOCF after leases
to breakeven in 2025, although leverage will remain very high at
7.5x.

"We forecast box office attendance to normalize in fiscal 2025.  We
estimate the company's 2025 admissions to recover by about 4% which
along with ticket and concession price increases, will lead to an
8% revenue increase. This will be supported by a strong slate of
releases including a very strong first quarter of fiscal 2025 when
Mufasa: The Lion King, Sonic The Hedgehog 3, and Nosferatu were
released, followed by Captain America: Brave New World, Mission:
Impossible 8, How To Train Your Dragon, and Jurassic World Rebirth
scheduled for later in the year. Consequently, the EBITDA margin
will recover to 23% from 20% in fiscal 2024, reflecting a rebound
in revenue, more stable energy costs and an increase in staff
costs, and lower exceptionals. Therefore, we forecast Vue's FOCF
after leases will become breakeven in fiscal 2025 and consistently
positive in fiscal 2026. However, uncertainty around the
macroeconomic outlook poses risks to cinema revenue, particularly
concerning the company's ability to further raise ticket prices.
While cinema attendance has shown some resilience during economic
downturns due to its relative affordability, the industry currently
faces substantial challenges. Cinemas are facing a high
substitution risk from on-demand streaming services. If the
macroeconomic environment deteriorates more than anticipated,
consumers may become increasingly sensitive to discretionary
spending and lead them to opt for lower cost entertainment
options.

"Vue's leverage will remain very high in 2025 and 2026 putting
pressure on cash flows.  We project Vue's S&P Global
Ratings-adjusted debt-to-EBITDA to decline to around 7.5x in fiscal
2025, down from nearly 9.0x at the end of fiscal 2024, but remain
very high and translate into high interest costs from 2026. In
February 2026, Vue will need to start paying cash-only interest on
its debt. Until then, most of the debt accrues payment-in-kind
(PIK) interest. This shift will raise total annual interest
payments, including lease interest, to about £130 million,
compared to the current estimate of £90 million per year, and
reduce the company's FOCF. Given its thin FOCF generation, this
leaves a small headroom for any underperformance against our
current forecast, which makes Vue's capital structure vulnerable
and prone to external shocks, such as lower admissions.

"The stable outlook reflects our view that in the next 12 months
Vue's organic revenue growth on the back of the global cinema
industry recovery will lead to FOCF after leases becoming breakeven
in fiscal 2025, allowing it to maintain adequate liquidity.

"We could lower our ratings on Vue if we considered that a default
event becomes increasingly likely in the next 12 months, either due
to operating underperformance leading to a liquidity shortfall, or
if we believed there was an increasing chance of another debt
restructuring transaction.

"We could upgrade our ratings if Vue's FOCF after leases became
sustainably positive, and if the company was on track to address
the refinancing well ahead of maturities becoming current."


ZEUS BIDCO: S&P Downgrades LT ICR to 'CCC+' on High Leverage
------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings lowered to 'CCC+' from 'B' its long-term issuer
credit rating on Zeus Bidco Ltd., the holding company of Zenith
Group's operating subsidiaries, and its issue rating on its senior
notes.

The stable outlook indicates that Zenith doesn't face major
maturities and will likely continue to fulfill its financial
obligations over the next 12 months.

S&P said, "Lower used car prices will continue to constrain
Zenith's cash flows and interest coverage ratio.  Despite used car
prices stabilizing somewhat, we expect Zenith's residual value
profit (that is, the profit the company realizes when reselling the
car returned by the client at the contract's end) will continue
declining, reflecting the increasing share of BEVs in its disposal
mix. In fiscal 2025, Zenith's reported profitability remained under
pressure due to lower residual value profit and fleet reassessment
charges, although the group's underlying performance improved
somewhat. We expect Zenith will continue generating net losses from
selling its used BEVs as used vehicles' prices have declined
materially over the past two years, while the share of BEVs in
total disposals will increase closer to 50% in 2027 from 25%
currently. That will constrain the recovery of Zenith's
profitability and operating cash flow beyond 2026, despite
additional lease revenue from the extension of lease contracts
under Project Volt. We assume in our base-case scenario that the
group will not face new major fleet reassessment charges, although
risks persist from the potential supply increase of new, cheaper,
and more technologically advanced BEVs.

"We now expect that Zenith's EBIT to interest coverage will remain
below 1.1x through at least fiscal year-end 2027, compared with
1.9x in 2023 and 0.7x in 2024.   At the same time, negative
operating cash flow after interest expense will cause the company's
liquidity position to gradually deteriorate, while its financial
leverage will remain very high. In our view, this will complicate
Zenith's refinancing of its senior secured notes maturing in June
2027 and increases the risk of a distressed exchange. On top of
that, we think the group is facing intense competition from
subsidiaries of large banking groups and car manufacturers, which
enjoy much lower funding costs. This might complicate Zenith
achieving targeted growth and simultaneously repricing its new
lease contracts.

"Although Zenith will likely maintain access to its securitization
facilities and will not face immediate financial constraints, its
capital structure appears to be unsustainable.  We expect the
company will likely extend the maturity of its securitization
facilities that are to start amortizing from November 2025,
considering their secured nature and this recent stabilization of
used car prices. This would allow Zenith to refleet and continue
seeking to grow. Also, the company does not face major maturities
in the next 12 months. However, Zenith remains highly vulnerable to
conditions on used car market, and further significant decline in
car prices could complicate the group's maintenance of its
securitized funding. We also think that unless there is a
significant, unexpected improvement in the group's financial
performance or some extraordinary measures like asset sales or
shareholder support, the existing debt profile might be
unsustainable, increasing risks for bondholders.

"The stable outlook indicates that Zenith doesn't face major
maturities in the next 12 months and incorporates our assumption
that Zenith will maintain access to its securitization facilities
and revolving credit facility (RCF).

"We could lower the rating if Zenith's liquidity deteriorates
faster than expected or if the company announces a distressed debt
restructuring.

A positive rating action could follow significant improvement in
financial performance or meaningful shareholder support.

S&P said, "We view Zenith's liquidity position as less than
adequate, despite its liquidity sources will continue to exceed
uses by at least 1.2x in the next 12 months. This is because a
relatively low covenant headroom on securitization facilities and
because we expect the company's liquidity will deteriorate beyond
our 12-month forecast horizon given weak cash flow."

Sources of liquidity in the 12 months from Sept. 30, 2024,
include:

-- GBP42.2 million of available cash (we exclude cash trapped in
securitization).

-- GBP65 million undrawn under the RCF and GBP177 million undrawn
under the securitization facility.

-- GBP204 million in cash FFO.

Uses of liquidity in that time include:

-- GBP493 million of capital expenditure for the new fleet and
GBP35 million of amortizing debt maturities.

-- GBP11 million put as additional collateral for securitization
facility.

Covenant Analysis

-- Zenith's only covenant on the RCF, requiring the consolidated
debt leverage ratio not to exceed 1.5x, was not tested because the
RCF was undrawn as of Sept. 30, 2024.

-- The key covenant on securitization is the aggregate realization
ratio. The first breach of 105% led to the outflow of GBP8.7
million in August 2024 to support collateral. The ratio was 104% as
of Sept. 30, 2024. Zenith will have to put additional collateral if
the ratio falls below 102%. Although possible, we do not expect a
second breach this year.

-- S&P rates Zenith's senior secured notes 'CCC+', the same level
as its issuer credit rating, with a '4' recovery rating, reflecting
its expectation of average recovery (30%-50%; rounded estimate:
35%) prospects in a default scenario.

-- The company's capital structure consists of a GBP65 million
super senior RCF, of which GBP55 million will be drawn, maturing in
2027; GBP1.075 billion of securitization facilities maturing in
November 2025; GBP132 million of a bilateral residual value
facility; GBP293 million of other wholesale funding; and GBP475
million of senior secured notes maturing in June 2027.

-- S&P's hypothetical default scenario envisages a default in
2027.

-- S&P derives the valuation using a combination approach, whereby
it uses an EBITDA multiple valuation to derive the value from the
services and fleet management business, and a depreciated asset
valuation to assign a value to the on-balance-sheet vehicle fleet
and lease receivables.

-- S&P has valued the company on a going-concern basis, using a 5x
emergence EBITDA multiple.

-- Year of default: 2027

-- Jurisdiction: U.K.

-- Net enterprise value after 5% administrative expense: GBP1.44
billion

-- Priority claims: GBP1.20 billion

-- Collateral available: GBP241 million

-- First-lien debt (RCF): GBP57 million

-- Secured debt: GBP490 million

    --Recovery expectation: 30%-50% (rounded estimate: 35%)




===============
X X X X X X X X
===============

[*] BOOK REVIEW: Taking Charge
------------------------------
Taking Charge: Management Guide to Troubled Companies and
Turnarounds

Author: John O. Whitney
Publisher: Beard Books
Softcover: 283 Pages
List Price: $34.95
Order a copy today at:
http://beardbooks.com/beardbooks/taking_charge.html    

Review by Susan Pannell

Remember when Lee Iacocca was practically a national hero? He won
celebrity status by taking charge at a company so universally known
as troubled that humor columnists joked their kids grew up thinking
the corporate name was "Ayling Chrysler." Whatever else Iacocca may
have been, he was a leader, and leadership is crucial to a
successful turnaround, maintains the author.

Mediagenic names merit only passing references in Whitney's book,
however. The author's own considerable experience as a turnaround
pro has given him more than sufficient perspective and acumen to
guide managers through successful turnarounds without resorting to
name-dropping. While Whitney states that he "share[s] no personal
war stories" in this book, it was, nonetheless, written from inside
the "shoes, skin, and skull of a turnaround leader." That sense of
immediacy, of urgency and intensity, makes Taking Charge compelling
reading even for the executive who feels he or she has already
mastered the literature of turnarounds.

Whitney divides the work into two parts. Part I is succinctly
entitled "Survival," and sets out the rules for taking charge
within the crucial first 120 days. "The leader rarely succeeds who
is not clearly in charge by the end of his fourth month," Whitney
notes. Cash budgeting, the mainstay of a successful turnaround, is
given attention in almost every chapter. Woe to the inexperienced
manager who views accounts receivable management as "an arcane
activity 'handled over in accounting.'" Whitney sets out 50
questions concerning AR that the leader must deal with -- not
academic exercises, but requirements for survival.

Other internal sources for cash, including judiciously managed
accounts payable and inventory, asset restructuring, and expense
cuts, are discussed. External sources of cash, among them banks,
asset lenders, and venture capital funds; factoring receivables;
and the use of trust receipts and field warehousing, are handled in
detail. Although cash, cash, and more cash is the drumbeat of Part
I, Whitney does not slight other subjects requiring attention. Two
chapters, for example, help the turnaround manager assess how the
company got into the mess in the first place, and develop
strategies for getting out of it.

The critical subject of cash continues to resonate throughout Part
II, "Profit and Growth," although here the turnaround leader
consolidates his gains and looks ahead as the turnaround matures.
New financial, new organizational, and new marketing arrangements
are laid out in detail. Whitney also provides a checklist for the
leader to use in brainstorming strategic options for the future.

Whitney's underlying theme -- that a successful business requires
personal leadership as well as bricks and mortar, money and
machinery -- is summed up in a concluding chapter that analyzes the
qualities that make a leader. His advice is as relevant in this
1999 reprint edition as it was in 1987 when first published.

John O. Whitney had a long and distinguished career in academia and
industry. He served as the Lead Director of Church and Dwight Co.,
Inc. and on the Advisory Board of Newsbank Corp. He was Professor
of Management and Executive Director of the Deming Center for
Quality Management at Columbia Business School, which he joined in
1986.  He died in 2013.



                           *********


S U B S C R I P T I O N   I N F O R M A T I O N

Troubled Company Reporter-Europe is a daily newsletter co-
published by Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., Fairless Hills,
Pennsylvania, USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, D.C., USA.
Marites O. Claro, Rousel Elaine T. Fernandez, Joy A. Agravante,
Julie Anne L. Toledo, Ivy B. Magdadaro, and Peter A. Chapman,
Editors.

Copyright 2025.  All rights reserved.  ISSN 1529-2754.

This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or
publication in any form (including e-mail forwarding, electronic
re-mailing and photocopying) is strictly prohibited without prior
written permission of the publishers.

Information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to
be reliable, but is not guaranteed.

The TCR Europe subscription rate is US$775 per half-year,
delivered via e-mail.  Additional e-mail subscriptions for
members of the same firm for the term of the initial subscription
or balance thereof are US$25 each.  For subscription information,
contact Peter Chapman at 215-945-7000.


                * * * End of Transmission * * *