Ropes & Gray Advises Frontier Communications in $2.1 Billion Fiber Broadband Securitization Financing

Ropes & Gray represented Frontier Communications Parent, Inc. in connection with its inaugural securitization of fiber network revenue term notes with a principal amount of $1.6 billion and variable funding note commitments of $500 million. The term notes are rated by Fitch Ratings Inc. and have a collective weighted average yield of 8.797%. The notes constitute the first offering of green bonds by a Frontier subsidiary and have an anticipated repayment term of five years. The transaction was announced by the company in an Aug. 9 press release.

The transaction represents the largest primary fiber securitization offering in history and is the first of its kind for a public fiber-to-the-premises telecom company. The notes are secured by certain of Frontier’s fiber network infrastructure assets and associated customer contracts in the Dallas metropolitan area, including broadband internet, phone, video and other services for around 286,000 residential and commercial customers. The transaction includes terms that allow fiber network assets and contracts located in other geographic areas serviced by Frontier to be added to the securitization at a later date to back future issuances of debt under the program.

The team was led by securitization partner Christopher Poggi, capital markets partner Will Michener, capital solutions partner Sam Badawi, financing partner Stefanie Birkmann and business restructuring partner Andrew Devore.