Exail shares tumble as clash over bond valuation could lift refinancing costs

By Jakob Van Calster and Zakarya Meliani

June 12 (Reuters) - Shares in Exail Technologies plunged 17% on Friday after the underwater drone maker flagged a €380 million gap in perceived bond and share valuations with creditor ICG, as part of ongoing talks to refinance its debt.

Exail said on Thursday evening the parties had failed to agree on the valuation of a potential redemption and repurchase of bonds and preference shares held by ICG in subsidiary Exail Holding.

The French company's shares were on track for their worst trading day in more than two years as of 1140 GMT, after it warned this could lead to additional financing requirements.

The dispute dates back to a 2022 financing deal linked to Exail’s acquisition of maritime robotics specialist iXblue. Under the agreement, ICG was to receive up to 18.7% of the value created beyond its received shares and bonds, analyst Julien Thomas from TP ICAP Midcap Partners said.

The parties now disagree on how to measure that value, with ICG arguing it should be based solely on Exail’s share price, which has soared more than 410% since September 2022, rather than the broader multi-method valuation initially envisaged.

“Exail might be a victim of its own success,” Thomas told Reuters, though he added he expected the disagreement to end in a "friendly settlement" with a cash premium of between €210 million and €477 million paid by Exail.

“At worst, the company may need to raise €170 million in bank debt … (which is) overall not a major concern," Thomas said.

Exail, which had previously said it planned to pay off the debt with cash before pursuing further acquisitions, reiterated that refinancing was a priority and it aimed to complete it by the end of 2026.

The company added the situation did not affect its operations which remain fully funded.

(Reporting by Jakob Van Calster and Zakarya Meliani in Gdansk, additional reporting by Hugo Lhomedet;Editing by Milla Nissi-Prussak)