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Debt
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2020
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]  
Debt Debt
Outstanding long-term debt was as follows:
December 31, 2020December 31, 2019
Senior long-term debt:
Senior Secured Credit Facility (stated maturity date October 2024)$— $202,400 
Senior Notes (stated maturity date May 2025)798,725 800,000 
Total senior long-term debt798,725 1,002,400 
Other debt:
Lines of credit59,014 14,542 
Notes payable and other debt138,630 169,308 
Total senior and other debt996,369 1,186,250 
Finance lease obligations and sale-leaseback financings52,639 28,102 
Total long-term debt and finance leases1,049,008 1,214,352 
Less: total unamortized deferred financing costs53,292 62,911 
Less: current portion of long-term debt and finance leases95,818 48,139 
Long-term debt and finance leases, less current portion$899,898 $1,103,302 

As of December 31, 2020, aggregate annual maturities of the senior and other debt, excluding finance lease obligations and sale-leaseback financings, were as follows:
December 31,Senior and Other Debt
2021$90,388 
202238,243 
202339,148 
202428,102 
2025800,488 
Thereafter— 
Total senior and other debt$996,369 

Senior Secured Credit Facility

During the second quarter of 2017, we completed a refinancing of our Senior Secured Credit Facility by means of an amendment and restatement of the existing amended and restated credit agreement (the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement) to provide a revolving credit facility that had an original borrowing capacity of $385,000 and originally matured in April 2022 (the Revolving Credit Facility), as well as a syndicated term loan of $1,600,000 that had a maturity date of April 26, 2024 (the 2024 Term Loan).

2024 Term Loan

On February 1, 2018, we amended our Senior Secured Credit Facility to reduce the interest rate on the 2024 Term Loan. In connection with this transaction, we also repaid $350,000 of the principal balance of the 2024 Term Loan in addition to $1,239 of accrued interest using the proceeds from the sale of our Cyprus and Italy operations, along with borrowings on our revolving credit facility that were subsequently repaid with the China sale proceeds.

Pursuant to the February 1, 2018 amendment, the interest rate margins applicable to the 2024 Term Loan were amended to 3.50% for LIBOR term loans and 2.50% for ABR term loans and such interest rate margins were no longer based upon the Company’s consolidated total debt to consolidated EBITDA ratio. The amendment effectively reduced the current interest rate margins applicable to the outstanding term loans, which prior to the amendment were based on the Company’s consolidated total debt to consolidated EBITDA ratio, by 100 basis points, from 4.50% to 3.50% for LIBOR term loans, and 3.50% to 2.50% for ABR term loans.
As discussed in Note 6, Dispositions, the sale of St. Augustine was completed on February 1, 2019 and the Company used $340,000 of the net proceeds to repay a portion of the 2024 Term Loan. During the second quarter of 2019, the Company fully repaid the remaining balance outstanding under its 2024 Term Loan, using the proceeds received from the sales of its operations in India, Spain and Portugal, as discussed in Note 6, Dispositions.

Revolving Credit Facility

Pursuant to terms of the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement in 2017, the maturity date for the Revolving Credit Facility was April 26, 2022. On October 7, 2019, the Company entered into a Third Amended and Restated Credit Agreement (the Third A&R Credit Agreement). Among other things, the Third A&R Credit Agreement increased the borrowing capacity of our revolving credit facility from $385,000 to $410,000 and extended the maturity date from April 26, 2022 to October 7, 2024.

Under the Third A&R Credit Agreement, the revolving credit facility bears interest at a per annum interest rate, at the option of the Company, at either the LIBO rate or the ABR rate, as defined in the agreement, plus an applicable margin of 2.50% per annum, 2.25% per annum, 2.00% per annum or 1.75% per annum for LIBOR loans, and 1.50% per annum, 1.25% per annum, 1.00% per annum or 0.75% per annum for ABR loans, in each case, based on the Company’s Consolidated Total Debt to Consolidated EBITDA ratio, as defined in the agreement.

As a subfacility under the Revolving Credit Facility, the Third A&R Credit Agreement provides for letter of credit commitments in the aggregate amount of $50,000. The Third A&R Credit Agreement also provides, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, for incremental revolving and term loan facilities, at the request of the Company, not to exceed the greater of (a) $565,000 or (b) 100% of the consolidated EBITDA of the Company, plus additional amounts so long as both immediately before and after giving effect to such incremental facilities the Company’s Consolidated Senior Secured Debt to Consolidated EBITDA ratio, as defined in the Third A&R Credit Agreement, on a pro forma basis, does not exceed 2.75x.

In March 2020, we fully drew down the $410,000 Revolving Credit Facility, in order to increase our cash position and preserve financial flexibility in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the fourth quarter of 2020, following the sale of our operations in Australia and New Zealand, the Company fully repaid the outstanding balance of the Revolving Credit Facility. As such, as of December 31, 2020, the Revolving Credit Facility had a total outstanding balance of $0. As of December 31, 2019, the Revolving Credit Facility had a total outstanding balance of $202,400, which consisted of $121,300 of LIBOR Loans that had an average interest rate of 3.61% and $81,100 of ABR loans that had an interest rate of 5.75%.

Guarantors of the Senior Secured Credit Facility

Laureate Education, Inc. is the borrower under our Senior Secured Credit Facility. All of Laureate’s required United States legal entities, excluding Walden, National Hispanic University (NHU), and certain subsidiaries that the Company considers dormant based on the lack of activity, are guarantors of the Senior Secured Credit Facility, and all of the guarantors’ assets, both real and intangible, are pledged as collateral. Certain Walden assets are also pledged as collateral, including all of Walden’s United States receivables other than Title IV student loans, all of its copyrights, patents, and trademarks. As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, the carrying value of the Walden receivables and intangibles pledged as collateral was $407,267 and $400,484, respectively. Additionally, not more than 65% of the shares held directly by United States guarantors in non-domestic subsidiaries are pledged as collateral.

Senior Notes

On April 26, 2017, we completed an offering of $800,000 aggregate principal amount of 8.250% Senior Notes due 2025 (the Senior Notes due 2025).The Senior Notes due 2025 were issued at par and will mature on May 1, 2025. Interest on the Senior Notes due 2025 is payable semi-annually on May 1 and November 1. We may redeem the Senior Notes due 2025, in whole or in part, at any time on or after May 1, 2020, at redemption prices starting at 106.188% of the principal amount thereof and decreasing from there each year thereafter until May 1, 2023, plus accrued and unpaid interest. From and after May 1, 2023, we may redeem all or part of the Senior Notes due 2025 at a redemption price of 100%, plus accrued and unpaid interest.

On October 13, 2020, the Company announced the commencement of a cash tender offer (the First Asset Sale Offer) to purchase up to $300,000 aggregate principal amount of the Senior Notes due 2025, at a purchase price of 100% of the principal amount thereof plus accrued and unpaid interest to, but not including, the purchase date. The First Asset Sale Offer was made pursuant to the indenture governing the Senior Notes due 2025 as a result of the Company's sale of its operations in Chile and Malaysia. The First Asset Sale Offer expired on November 10, 2020. On November 16, 2020, the Company purchased $775
aggregate principal amount, plus accrued and unpaid interest, of the Senior Notes due 2025 that were validly tendered as of the expiration of the First Asset Sale Offer.

On November 12, 2020, following the expiration of the First Asset Sale Offer, the Company announced the commencement of a cash tender offer (the Second Asset Sale Offer) to purchase up to $650,000 aggregate principal amount of the Senior Notes due 2025, at a purchase price of 100% of the principal amount thereof plus accrued and unpaid interest to, but not including, the purchase date. The Second Asset Sale Offer was made pursuant to the indenture governing the Senior Notes due 2025 as a result of the Company's sale of its operations in Australia and New Zealand. The Second Asset Sale Offer expired on December 10, 2020. On December 14, 2020, the Company purchased $500 aggregate principal amount, plus accrued and unpaid interest, of the Senior Notes due 2025 that were validly tendered as of the expiration of the Second Asset Sale Offer.

As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, our Senior Notes due 2025 had an outstanding balance of $798,725 and $800,000, respectively.

Estimated Fair Value of Debt

The estimated fair value of our debt was determined using observable market prices since the majority of our securities, including the Senior Secured Credit Facility and the Senior Notes due 2025, are traded in a brokered market. The fair value of our remaining debt instruments approximates carrying value based on their terms. As of December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, our long-term debt was classified as Level 2 within the fair value hierarchy, based on the frequency and volume of trading in the brokered market. The estimated fair value of our debt was as follows:
December 31, 2020December 31, 2019
Carrying amountEstimated fair valueCarrying amountEstimated fair value
Total senior and other debt$996,369 $1,043,294 $1,186,250 $1,248,110 

Certain Covenants

As of December 31, 2020, our senior long-term debt contained certain negative covenants including, among others: (1) limitations on additional indebtedness; (2) limitations on dividends; (3) limitations on asset sales, including the sale of ownership interests in subsidiaries and sale-leaseback transactions; and (4) limitations on liens, guarantees, loans or investments. The Third A&R Credit Agreement provides, solely with respect to the revolving credit facility, that the Company shall not permit its Consolidated Senior Secured Debt to Consolidated EBITDA ratio, as defined in the Third A&R Credit Agreement, to exceed 3.50x as of the last day of each quarter commencing with the quarter ending December 31, 2019 and thereafter. The agreement also provides that if (i) the Company’s Consolidated Total Debt to Consolidated EBITDA ratio, as defined in the Third A&R Credit Agreement, is not greater than 4.75x as of such date and (ii) less than 25% of the revolving credit facility is utilized as of that date, then such financial covenant shall not apply. As of December 31, 2020, these conditions were satisfied and, therefore, we were not subject to the leverage ratio. In addition, indebtedness at some of our locations contain financial maintenance covenants. We were in compliance with these covenants as of December 31, 2020.

Debt Modification and Loss on Debt Extinguishment

In 2020, the Company recorded a Loss on debt extinguishment of $610 related primarily to the write off of a pro-rata portion of the unamortized deferred financing costs associated with repaid debt balances.

In 2019, the Company recorded a Loss on debt extinguishment of $22,601 related primarily to the write off of a pro-rata portion of the unamortized deferred financing costs associated with repaid debt balances, as well as the debt discount associated with the 2024 Term Loan.

In 2018, Laureate recorded a Loss on debt extinguishment of $7,481 related to the February 1, 2018 amendment of our Senior Secured Credit Facility and the write-off of a pro-rata portion of the term loan’s remaining deferred financing costs in connection with the $350,000 principal payment.

Debt Issuance Costs

Amortization of debt issuance costs and accretion of debt discounts that are recorded in Interest expense in the Consolidated Statements of Operations totaled approximately $10,103, $10,370 and $11,187 for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019
and 2018, respectively. During the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, we paid and capitalized a total of $669, $1,368 and $61, respectively, in debt issuance costs. Certain unamortized debt issuance costs were written off in 2020, 2019 and 2018 in connection with early repayment of debt balances and debt agreement amendments, as discussed above. As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, our unamortized debt issuance costs were $53,292 and $62,911, respectively.

Currency and Interest Rate Swaps

The interest and principal payments for Laureate’s senior long-term debt arrangements are to be paid primarily in USD. Our ability to make debt service payments is subject to fluctuations in the value of the USD relative to foreign currencies, because a majority of our operating cash used to make these payments is generated by subsidiaries with functional currencies other than USD. As part of our overall risk management policies, Laureate has at times entered into foreign currency swap contracts and interest rate swap contracts. See also Note 13, Derivative Instruments.

Other Debt

Lines of Credit

Individual Laureate subsidiaries have the ability to borrow pursuant to unsecured lines of credit and similar short-term borrowing arrangements (collectively, lines of credit). The lines of credit are available for working capital purposes and enable us to borrow and repay until those lines mature. At December 31, 2020 and 2019, the aggregate outstanding balances on our lines of credit were $59,014 and $14,542, respectively. At December 31, 2020, we had zero additional available borrowing capacity under our outstanding lines of credit. At December 31, 2020, interest rates on our lines of credit ranged from 2.10% to 7.93%. At December 31, 2019, we had one line of credit outstanding that had an interest rate of 7.93%. Our weighted-average short-term borrowing rate was 6.13% and 7.93% at December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.

Notes Payable

Notes payable include mortgages payable that are secured by certain fixed assets. The notes payable have varying maturity dates and repayment terms through 2025. Interest rates on notes payable ranged from 2.10% to 10.25% and 5.75% to 10.25% at December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.

In August 2015, Universidad del Valle de México (UVM Mexico) entered into an agreement with a bank for a loan of MXN 1,300,000 (approximately $79,000 at the time of the loan). The loan carried a variable interest rate based on the 28-day Mexican Interbanking Offer Rate (TIIE) plus an applicable margin and was scheduled to mature in August 2020. During December 2017, this loan was paid in full and a new loan in the amount of MXN 1,700,000 (approximately $89,000 at the time of the loan) was obtained. The new loan was scheduled to mature in December 2023. During the year ended December 31, 2019, this loan was reassigned to Estrater, S.A. de C.V., SOFOM ENR (Estrater), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company within Mexico. The loan carries a variable interest rate based on TIIE, plus an applicable margin, which is established based on the ratio of debt to EBITDA, as defined in the agreement (5.98% and 9.06% as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively). Quarterly principal payments on the loan commenced in December 2018, beginning at MXN 42,500 ($2,139 at December 31, 2020) and increasing over the term of the loan to MXN 76,500 ($3,850 at December 31, 2020), with a balloon payment of MXN 425,000 ($21,388 at December 31, 2020) due at maturity. In June 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Esrater and the lender agreed to defer the quarterly loan payments for six months, until December 2020, after which, the principal and interest payments resumed in accordance to the original agreement. Under the terms of the deferral agreement, the maturity date of the loan was extended by six months to June 22, 2024. As of December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the outstanding balance of this loan was $68,013 and $77,569, respectively.

The Company obtained financing to fund the construction of two new campuses at one of our institutions in Peru, Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas (UPC). As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, one loan remained outstanding, and had an outstanding balance of $13,361 and $14,542, respectively. The remaining loan carries an interest rate of 7.93% and was originally scheduled to mature in October 2022. Principal payments, plus accrued and unpaid interest, are made semi-annually in April and October. During the COVID-19 pandemic, UPC and the lending bank agreed to defer the scheduled 2020 principal payments for one year (the deferral period), and agreed to extend the loan maturity date by one year to October 2023. During the deferral period, the quarterly interest payments will continue per the terms of the original agreement, and the quarterly principal payments will resume in April 2021.
Laureate has outstanding notes payable at Universidad Privada del Norte (UPN), one of our institutions in Peru. As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, these loans had interest rates ranging from 2.10% to 7.85% and 7.85% to 8.70%, respectively, and had varying maturity dates through January 2022 and December 2024, respectively. As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, these loans had a balance of $12,694 and $23,480, respectively.

On December 22, 2017, a Laureate subsidiary in Peru entered into an agreement to borrow PEN 247,500 (approximately $76,000 at the agreement date). The loan bears interest at a fixed rate of 6.62% per annum and was originally scheduled to mature in December 2022. Quarterly payments in the amount of PEN 9,281 ($2,573 at December 31, 2020) were due from March 2018 through December 2019. The quarterly payments increased to PEN 14,438 ($4,003 at December 31, 2020) in March 2020 through the loan's maturity. In June 2020, the Laureate subsidiary and the lender agreed to defer the quarterly principal payments for one year (the deferral period), and agreed to extend the maturity date of the loan by one year to December 2023. During the deferral period, the quarterly interest payments will continue per the terms of the original agreement, and the quarterly principal payments will resume in June 2021. As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, this loan had a balance of $44,029 and $52,278, respectively.