Birch Completes Debt Offering

ATLANTA, June 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Birch Communications, Inc. ("Birch") announced today that it has completed a private debt offering that was previously announced in November 2009. This private debt offering is exempt from the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933.

This debt offering includes the Company's working capital facility and senior secured notes which have a combined value of $60 million in funded or committed capital. The working capital facility was provided by Silicon Valley Bank and the lenders providing the senior secured financing include PennantPark Investment Corporation and TICC Capital Corporation. In addition to this debt offering, Birch intends to secure $15 million in debt capital which is expected to close in the coming months.

"The progress in our financing initiatives underscores the fact that the financial markets are confident about Birch's fundamental stability and growth potential," noted Edward James, Birch's chief financial officer.

Birch will use the net proceeds from this private debt offering to repay outstanding indebtedness and for general corporate purposes, including future acquisitions.

"This funding affirms and further enables our efforts to continue to execute on our dual corporate strategy of building out the Birch IP network, which increases our operating margins, as well as completing additional highly-accretive acquisitions," said Vincent M. Oddo, Birch's president and chief executive officer.

The placement agent for the Company's senior secured notes offering was Knight subsidiary Knight Libertas LLC. Redwood Capital acted as financial advisor to Birch Communications in connection with the senior secured notes offering.

About Birch Communications 

Headquartered in Atlanta, GA, Birch Communications is one of the largest IP-based telecommunications and managed services providers serving small business customers in 32 states in the southeast, southwest and midwest. Birch is the first in its class to deploy a private IP-Network utilizing soft switch technology to deliver innovative, high quality, affordable voice and broadband communications services to small and medium-sized business customers. Please visit www.birch.com for more information.

About Silicon Valley Bank

Silicon Valley Bank is the premier commercial bank for companies in the technology, life science, venture capital, private equity and premium wine industries. SVB provides a comprehensive suite of financing solutions, treasury management, corporate investment and international banking services to its clients worldwide. Through its focus on specialized markets and extensive knowledge of the people and business issues driving them, Silicon Valley Bank provides a level of service and partnership that measurably impacts its clients' success. Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif., the company serves clients around the world through 26 U.S. offices and five international operations. Silicon Valley Bank is a member of global financial services firm SVB Financial Group (Nasdaq: SIVB), along with SVB Analytics, SVB Capital, SVB Global and SVB Private Client Services. More information on Silicon Valley Bank can be found at www.svb.com.

About Knight

Knight Capital Group, Inc. (NYSE Euronext: KCG) is global financial services firm that provides market access and trade execution services across multiple asset classes to buy- and sell side firms. Knight's hybrid market model features complementary electronic and voice trade execution services in global equities and fixed income as well as foreign exchange, futures and options. The firm is consistently ranked as the leading source of liquidity in U.S. equities by share volume. Knight also offers capital markets services to corporate issuers. Knight is headquartered in Jersey City, NJ with a growing global presence across North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. For more information, please go to www.knight.com.

About Redwood Capital Group, LLC

Redwood Capital Group is an investment banking firm serving the technology, communications and media & business services industries. The firm focuses on mergers & acquisitions, debt and equity financings and financial advisory services for its clients worldwide. Additional information can be found at www.redcapgroup.com.

About PennantPark Investment Corporation

PennantPark Investment Corporation is a business development company which principally invests in U.S. middle-market private companies in the form of mezzanine debt, senior secured loans and equity investments. From time to time, the Company may also invest in public companies whose securities are thinly traded or that have a market capitalization of less than $250 million. PennantPark Investment Corporation is managed by PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC. Additional information can be found at www.pennantpark.com.

About TICC Capital Corp.

TICC a publicly traded business development company principally engaged in providing capital to small to mid-size technology-related companies. While the structures of their financings vary, TICC looks to invest primarily in the debt of established technology-related businesses. Additional information can be found at www.ticc.com. 

SOURCE Birch Communications, Inc.