Akin Advises Lenders to OQ Chemicals on Recapitalisation

(London, Boston) – Akin advised the ad hoc group of lenders to the OQ Chemicals Group, one of the world’s largest suppliers of oxo chemicals, on the Group’s holistic recapitalisation, and amendment of its credit facilities. The Group, which will reinstate its former name, Oxea, is a global manufacturer of Oxo Intermediates and Oxo Performance Chemicals such as alcohols, polyols, carboxylic acids, specialty esters and amines. It employs more than 1,400 people worldwide and markets its chemicals in more than 60 countries.  

The transaction closed on April 8, 2025, with certain lenders becoming the new shareholders of the Group following a partial equitisation of their loans and injection of new equity. The lenders under the Group’s senior credit facilities have also amended and extended their loans. The transaction was implemented consensually, following overwhelming support from the Group’s lenders. Alongside Akin, Lazard provided financial advice and Gleiss Lutz provided German law advice to the ad hoc group of lenders.

The transaction follows several interim transactions last year on which Akin also advised the ad hoc group of lenders. Those included the provision to the Group of €75 million of interim liquidity on a super priority basis and an interim maturity extension.

The cross-practice Akin team was led by financial restructuring partners Emma Simmonds and James Terry and counsel Ross Macgregor, and special situations partners Joshua Peary and Amy Kennedy. The wider team included senior counsel Caoimhe Kennedy and associates Allison DeSanto, Matthew Roderick, Tom Marr, Amanda Sivin and Sebastian Grant-Preece. Additional advice was provided by partners Vance Chapman (Corporate), Davina Garrod (Antitrust & International Competition) and Matthew Durward-Thomas (Tax).

Akin is a leading international law firm with more than 900 lawyers in offices throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.