Bear Stearns and the Royal Bank of Scotland are in the market with a $190 million facility for Buckeye Check Cashing. The deal consists of a six-year, $20 million revolver; a six-year, $130 million first-lien term loan and a $40 million second lien. Pricing was expected last Thursday, but could not be determined by press time. The deal backs the leveraged buyout of the company by Diamond Castle and management. Calls to Diamond Castle were not returned.
Buckeye, also known as Check$mart, its brand name, hired Stephens, a privately owned investment bank headquartered in Little Rock, Ark., to explore strategic alternatives. Ted Saunders, cfo, said the company has had no liquidity in the business for almost 20 years and the owners wanted to look at alternatives and met Diamond Castle as part of that process. Diamond Castle will become the majority owner, but the current owners will still be very involved going forward. Saunders expects the transaction to be completed by the end of April.
The company offers financial services to customers who require cash immediately, whether just cashing a check or getting a payroll advance. It also offers bill pay services, wire transfers, money orders, pre-paid debit cards and phone cards. It has over 184 locations in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Florida, Virginia, Arizona and Utah.