Instant Pot Maker Lays Foundation for Controversial Debt Move

Lenders to Instant Brands Holdings, the housewares maker behind the likes of Instant Pot and Pyrex, are huddling with lawyers after the company opened the door to a controversial form of financing, according to people familiar with the matter.

Instant Brands in recent days told lenders it started the process of moving a property into a new legal entity, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. Such moves often precede divisive debt maneuvers, known in industry parlance as drop-down transactions, which allow companies to raise new money by borrowing against the …