Skillsoft, Global Knowledge in Talks to Go Public Via Churchill

(Bloomberg) -- Educational technology companies Global Knowledge Training LLC and Skillsoft Ltd. are in talks to merge and simultaneously go public through Michael Klein’s Churchill Capital Corp. II, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Global Knowledge’s lenders have been informed about a potential combination, said some of the people, who requested anonymity because the talks are private. The company, backed by Rhone Group, provides training for International Business Machines Corp., Cisco Systems Inc., Microsoft Corp. and other tech giants, according to its website. As with any deal that hasn’t been finalized, it’s possible talks could collapse.

Representatives for Global Knowledge, Skillsoft and Rhone declined to comment. Representatives for Churchill Capital Corp. II didn’t immediately respond to a request seeking comment.

Both Cary, North Carolina-based Global Knowledge and Nashua, New Hampshire-based Skillsoft have faced financial distress in recent months. Global Knowledge’s first-lien loan due in 2021 is trading at about 55 cents on the dollar, Bloomberg data show, while Skillsoft filed for bankruptcy in June, citing a decline in customers.

Skillsoft’s restructuring plan cut its debt by around $1.5 billion and left it with $50 million of liquidity. Lenders took control of Skillsoft through the court-supervised process, exchanging their holdings for the company’s reorganized equity. The company’s previous equity holders, including majority owner Charterhouse Capital Partners, didn’t recover anything under the plan, which was approved in August.

The reorganization also left open the option for the company to explore a potential sale or “alternative transaction,” according to court papers. Skillsoft sought court permission to hold exclusive talks with an unnamed “interested party” and perform due diligence. The potential deal would need approval from all consenting parties including Skillsoft’s board and creditors, filings show.

Churchill Capital Corp. II had been in talks with Topgolf International Inc., Bloomberg reported in July. Any deal will Skillsoft and Global Knowledge would effectively scrap the blank-check company’s ability to merge with Topgolf.

The first Churchill blank-check company, Churchill Capital Corp., merged last year with Clarivate Analytics Plc to form Clarivate Plc.

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