Barclays and J.P. Morgan are launching a $100 million credit for Itasca, Ill.-based PrimeCo Personal Communications, the Chicago-based service provider that is being acquired by Clarity Partners and Pacific Capital Group. Green Leaf Ridge Company, J.P. Morgan Capital Partners and Tregan Partners are in on the acquisition, which is being primarily funded by equity. Calls to officials at the buyout shops were referred to a spokeswoman for Clarity, who referred questions to Michael Hannon at J.P. Morgan Partners. Hannon was unavailable by press time. Calls to officials at Barclays and J.P. Morgan were not returned.
Split between an $80 million term loan "A" and a $20 million revolver, all-in pricing is LIBOR plus 4%. The deal is being watched closely as it is a cash-flow positive telecom company with strong backing. PrimeCo owns 20 Mhz of spectrum, allowing it to service almost 13 million subscribers.
Last year, J.P. Morgan and Green Leaf Ridge, along with Arlington Capital Partners, Carlyle Group, First Union Capital Partners and Odyssey Investment Partners, tried to acquire PrimeCo and some Verizon PCS assets in Cincinnati for more than $2 billion. But that deal, known as MainStream PCS, fell apart in October when Deutsche Bank withdrew the $1.4 billion debt package it had committed to support the acquisition.