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Over 1,300 Travelex UK jobs lost in ‘complex’ debt restructure

More than 1,300 UK jobs will be lost at Travelex despite the foreign exchange firm being rescued in a ‘pre-pack’ administration deal.

The impact of a cyber attack in December 2019 and the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic this year has “acutely impacted” the business, administrators PwC said.

A “complex” debt restructuring deal had delivered £84 million of new money and substantially reduced the firm’s debts.

PwC said that the pre-pack administration had been reached which had saved 1,800 UK Travelex jobs.

This is where a firm sells all or some of its assets to a pre-determined buyer and appoints administrators to do so.

PwC said parts of the firm had been bought by a newly created company controlled by its lenders.

That includes the parts that deal with supermarkets and large corporate and banking customers, and some of its airport business.

However, the high street shops and airport branches that were closed during lockdown will not reopen.

Toby Banfield, joint administrator at PwC, said: “We would like to thank the employees, management team and all stakeholders who have been an integral part of the Travelex business for their tireless efforts.

“Against the challenging backdrop of the pandemic and current economic climate, they have helped to deliver a highly complex restructuring, enabling a core part of the business to continue operating under new ownership.

“The completion of this transaction has safeguarded 1,802 jobs in the UK and a further 3,635 globally, and ensured the continuation of a globally recognised brand.

“Unfortunately, as the majority of the UK retail business is no longer able to continue trading, it has regrettably resulted in 1,309 UK employees being made redundant today.

“Our dedicated employee team will be providing support to all of the people impacted.”

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