Four Seasons Healthcare close to debt deal-report

British care home operator Four Seasons Healthcare is close to an agreement with creditorsto halve its 1.5 billion pounds ($2.55 billion) of debt, the Financial Times reported.

The newspaper reported in it's Friday edition that anin-principle agreement, expected to be announced next week, was possible after a group of hedge funds that had previously blocked the deal gave it their support. Junior lenders to Four Seasons came under pressure last month to sign up to a debtrestructuring deal.

Royal Bank of Scotland , together with funds itmanages, is set to end up as the largest single shareholder inFour Seasons after the restructuring with about 40 percent, the newspaper reported, citing people close to the talks.

RBS and its private equity group RBS Special Opportunities fund will own the equity in exchange for writing off it's ranking investments across the company's debt structure, according to the report.

Neither Four Seasons or Royal Bank of Scotland wasavailable for comment.