Stemcor on verge of £715m standstill deal Stemcor, the fifth-largest private company in the UK which is majority owned by the Oppenheimer family, has appointed Goldman Sachs and Ernst & Young to lead the sell-offs. It is understood a standstill agreement with a syndicate of banks in relation to two separate revolving credit facilities - a European loan worth $850m and an Asian loan valued at $225m - could be signed as early as Monday. The agreement is important as the $850m year-long loan had been due to expire on May 7, and the banks had indicated their unwillingness to renew it. The standstill agreement will allow the company to keep the facilities in place until they are able to repay them. Stemcor's management, led by new chief executive Julian Verden, are last week understood to have set out a preliminary proposal to pay that debt in full over the next couple of years, by accelerating a restructuring announced in March and selling off units. Lenders, including BNP Paribas, Société Générale and Standard Chartered, are understood to have responded positively. The company, based in the City of London, said in March that it would cut its 600-strong UK workforce by approximately 5pc and restructure various parts of its business. It is understood that when Mr Verden took over as chief executive from Ralph Oppenheimer - who remains chairman - he indicated addressing the company's short-term debt pile was one of his key priorities. Stemcor did not comment.