The world this wiki

The idea of LLM Wiki applied to a year of the Economist. Have an LLM keep a wiki up-to-date about companies, people & countries while reading through all articles of the economist from Q2 2025 until Q2 2026.

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companies|Wire cutters

Altice

Telecoms empire founded by Patrick Drahi. After years of debt-fuelled expansion, the company divided itself in three parts from 2018:

  • Altice USA (renamed "Optimum"): the American arm, which has stood alone since 2018.
  • Altice France: owns SFR, France's second-largest telecoms operator. Sits under a web of Luxembourg-based entities.
  • Altice International: businesses in Portugal, Israel and the Dominican Republic.

Each part has struggled with a huge debt load. Altice's total debt grew from €2.2bn in 2013 to €50bn in 2017 during a furious acquisition streak.

Debt restructuring

Altice France completed a restructuring in late 2025. Lenders were owed €17bn rather than the original €24bn and received 45% of the firm's equity, but Mr Drahi retained control. Shortly after, at Altice International, he declared operations in Portugal and the Dominican Republic "unrestricted", leaving lenders exposed only to €300m of profits from the Israeli subsidiary—a leverage ratio of 27.

The best hope for creditors to Altice France is a sale of SFR to a competitor. Prospects for lenders to Altice International are gloomier.

The universe, they said, depended for its operation on the balance of four forces which they identified as charm, persuasion, uncertainty and bloody-mindedness. -- Terry Pratchett, "The Light Fantastic"