Optimum Pushes Apollo, Ares Feud to Brink With Asset Shift (1)

One of the most bitter feuds in distressed-debt investing, between billionaire Patrick Drahi and some of the world’s biggest money managers, has suddenly gotten even more contentious.

Drahi’s Optimum Communications Inc., which has sued Apollo Capital Management, Ares Management, BlackRock Financial Management and other lenders on antitrust grounds, announced a deal Monday that would move more assets out of reach of the firms. The plan now puts the so-called co-operation group in a tough spot: Either hold out and risk a bankruptcy filing that could leave them with a lower recovery than before, or strike a bargain ...