Alvarez & Marsal, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Deloitte & Touche are pursuing a mandate to administer the bankruptcy protection process for Brazilian telecommunications group Oi SA, Reuters reported on Friday. Oi filed last month for court protection from creditors on 65.4 billion real ($19.9 billion) of bonds, bank debt and operating liabilities, Brazil's biggest filing ever of its kind. The judge in charge of the case has asked telecom watchdog Anatel to propose candidates for the role, and on Friday the regulator extended the deadline for applications to July 11. The Oi saga took another twist on Friday when a minority investor called for the replacement of most of its board, underscoring deep divisions among major shareholders that derailed recent negotiations with creditors. Alvarez & Marsal submitted a formal bid with Anatel on Friday and received confirmation from the regulator that the bid was received. The timing of the Price and Deloitte bids is unclear.
