Companies with debt on the balance sheet have a six-month window to try negotiating a better deal with their lenders, thanks to an accounting standards project running behind schedule.
According to Charles Goldstein, managing director at Protiviti, since the Financial Accounting Standards Board agreed to a brief delay in new requirements for banks to change the way they account for troubled debt restructurings (TDRs), lenders may be more willing to talk. When the new rules take effect—probably in mid-2011—banks likely will have to classify more loan modifications as TDRs, which will lead to more losses, he says. “Obviously financial institutions want ...