Cloud tech firm Avaya wins approval for reorganization, to go private

MORRITOWN, N.J. – Cloud technology firm Avaya, which until last month was headquartered in Durham, has won court approval for its reorganization plan and will emerge from bankruptcy as a private company with substantially less debt as well as having more than $650 million on its balance sheet.

The company recently moved its headquarters to Morristown, N.J. According to Avaya, workers in Durham were offered the option to continue to work remotely.

CEO Alan Masarek continues to run the company.

Masarek joined the company in July 2022 after the firm’s longtime CEO Jim Chirico was “removed.”  Avaya also cut jobs multiple times in 2022, including in September 2022.

Avaya declared bankruptcy in February.

“We embarked on this process with a clear goal – to create a stronger financial foundation that enables us to build on our competitive industry position, strengthen our partner ecosystem and better meet the needs of our customers with further investment in our cutting-edge, long-range product roadmaps,” Masarek said in the reorganization announcement. “I am pleased with our progress as we prepare to complete this critical step of our business model transformation, and I am grateful for the confidence of our customers, partners, team members and investors along the way.”

Avaya files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, but CEO plans a ‘transformation’

The reorganization plan reduces Avaya total debt by more than 75%, the company said.

“The resounding support for our restructuring plan is a testament to the significant value our investors see in our business and the solutions we provide, and we look forward to capitalizing on the opportunities ahead,” Masarek said. “With considerable resources to execute on our R&D initiatives and cloud communications roadmap, we intend to accelerate the delivery of exceptional experiences to our customers and partners.”

Investment firms Apollo Global Management, Inc. and Brigade Capital Management, LP, have “invested significant incremental capital as part of this process to best position the Company going forward,” Avaya noted.

The post Cloud tech firm Avaya wins approval for reorganization, to go private first appeared on WRAL TechWire.