Punch aiming to beat down debts

Britain’s biggest pub operator has reportedly started talks to reduce its £2.3 billion debt mountain, which are set to spark a bitter battle for control of the company.

Punch Taverns, which owns about 5,000 pubs, has proposed a complex loans-for-equity swap that would allow it to walk away from much of its debt but give creditors a majority stake, according to weekend reports. It has hired Blackstone and Goldman Sachs to advise on the negotiations.