Goldman Sale of MoneyGram LBO Debt Stings as Investors Get Picky

Banks led by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. sprinted to sell $900 million of debt tied to the buyout of MoneyGram International Inc. this week to to avoid getting hooked into financing the debt themselves, and ended up selling at heavily discounted prices.

The banks sold a $400 million leveraged loan at a discounted price of 83 cents on the dollar — the lowest price seen this year. The $500 million bond sale wasn’t much better, with an all-in yield of 12.742% after bankers also sold it at 83 cents on the dollar. That allowed private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners ...