Wall Street banks boost Warner Bros loan to over $10 billion ahead of Paramount merger
A banking syndicate led by JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley has lifted its bridge-financing commitment to Warner Bros Discovery above $10 billion, the largest loan package of the year. The capital underpins the firm's expected merger with Paramount Skydance.
A syndicate of Wall Street's largest banks has lifted its bridge-financing commitment to Warner Bros Discovery above $10 billion, the largest single-borrower package of the year. The deal, led by JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley with Goldman Sachs, Bank of America and Citigroup also participating, anchors the studio's expected merger with Paramount Skydance.
The transaction marks the largest media-sector repositioning of the past decade. The planned tie-up would consolidate HBO Max, Paramount+, CNN, MTV and Showtime under a single roof. People familiar with the talks say US and EU competition authorities will scrutinise the studios' combination once formal filings begin.
Warner Bros Discovery shares climbed nearly 4% in pre-market trade after the report. The syndicate said pricing on the bridge would be set 350–400 basis points above SOFR, with the repayment schedule contingent on the merged company's restructured balance sheet. Investors are focused on how Warner Bros Discovery's roughly $40 billion net debt load will be managed through the transition.
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