Distressed deals on the rise

Greece leads massive increase in global restructuring activity.

FORTUNE -- There was $335.9 billion worth of completed distressed debt and bankruptcy restructuring activity in the first half of 2012, according to data released today by Thomson Reuters (TRI).

That's a whopping 223.9% increase over the first half of 2011, albeit with 242 fewer deals. The big skew came from Greece's $263.1 billion debt exchange transaction, which is the largest-ever restructuring.

U.S. activity totaled $31.3 billion, or a 14.7% decrease from 2011. The leading sector for U.S. restructuring transactions was financials, which accounted for 37% of deal volume. It was followed by media/entertainment (25%) and retail (12%):

Source: Thomson Reuters

Financials also were the leading global sector with 49%, followed by healthcare and materials (each with 12%).

The Blackstone Group (BX) led both the global and U.S. completed restructuring advisor league tables, followed by Lazard (globally) and Houlihan Lokey (U.S.). Lazard led in the emerging markets, while Moelis & Co. led for Asia-Pacific.

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Posted in: Distressed Debt, Greece

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