Endo International Plc, the latest drugmaker impaired by opioid lawsuits, must decide whether to skip more than $90 million in interest payments as it contemplates a potential bankruptcy filing, Bloomberg News reported. The company has been discussing its options with creditor groups that have conflicting views over its best path for dealing with lawsuits over its role in America’s opioid epidemic, a mounting debt load and a dimmed outlook for its bestselling drug. The company’s senior lenders have advocated for a bankruptcy filing and want the company to skip upcoming interest payments to preserve cash, according to people with knowledge of the talks. Endo’s lower-ranking creditors — the ones that would collect the bulk of interest due Thursday and at the end of July, are pressing options that would allow the drugmaker to restructure outside of court. Endo has a payment due on June 30 to holders of 6% bonds maturing in 2028. At the end of July the company is scheduled to pay $55 million more in interest to various other creditors, according to data collected by Bloomberg. Senior lenders have argued the advantages of skipping the interest payments and filing for bankruptcy. Endo and the lenders have been trading proposals as they try to come to a deal. The 6% unsecured notes due 2028 traded at 6 cents on the dollar Wednesday, according to Trace data. Meanwhile, the 5.875% first-lien bonds due 2024 changed hands at approximately 76 cents on the dollar.
