Malone’s Ziggo Markets Junk Bonds to Pave Dutch Vodafone Merger

(Bloomberg) -- Billionaire John Malone’s Dutch telecom company is seeking to raise 3.1 billion euros ($3.5 billion) in one of the biggest junk-bond deals in Europe this year.

Ziggo Group Holding BV is marketing notes in the single currency and dollars, it said in a statement Thursday. The securities due in 2027 will be sold through two subsidiaries. Proceeds will be used to pay off loans and boost capital after Ziggo’s merger with Vodafone Group Plc’s Dutch business.

The unit of Malone’s Liberty Global Plc has already raised $3.9 billion in loans as it readies for the tie-up, which won European Union approval last month. High-yield bond sales in euros have surged to the most in four months as companies take advantage of borrowing costs pushed down by European Central Bank stimulus.