leveraged buyout

American  

noun

1. the purchase of a company with borrowed money, using the company's assets as collateral, and often discharging the debt and realizing a profit by liquidating the company. LBO

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leveraged buyout British  

/ ˈliːvərɪdʒd /

noun

1. LBO. a takeover bid in which a small company makes use of its limited assets, and those of the usually larger target company, to raise the loans required to finance the takeover

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leveraged buyout Cultural  

1. The purchase of a company mainly with borrowed money on the expectation that the purchaser can repay from the company's future profits or by selling its assets. Buyers sometimes raise the money by issuing junk bonds.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

leveraged buyout

Paramount has separately lined up debt financiers to help pull off the leveraged buyout of Warner Bros.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026

The private-equity firm, alongside Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, completed its acquisition of videogame developer Electronic Arts earlier this month via a $55 billion leveraged buyout.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026

It is thought to be the largest leveraged buyout in history, meaning a significant part of it is paid for with borrowed money, which the company will have to pay back.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

Many critics, including Barron’s, accused Michael Dell, 61, and his partners of shortchanging other investors when they took Dell private in a leveraged buyout in 2013.

From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026

Southland had gone bankrupt under the financial strain of a 1987 leveraged buyout.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 25, 2026

Related Words

• hostile takeover