不可抗力长期以来一直保护企业免受天灾影响。如今，一些借款人希望获得针对人工智能行为的保护。
Force majeure has long protected companies from acts of God. Now some borrowers want protection from acts of AI.
私募股权公司正在新的收购交易中加入类似不可抗力的条款，允许企业暂停处理其认定的由人工智能冲击所导致的违约。
Private equity firms are adding force majeure-style clauses to new buyouts that could let companies stop the clock on addressing defaults they determine were caused by AI disruption.
据知情人士透露，H.I.G. Capital成功将这一条款纳入了为其收购Terras Group多数股权提供支持的4.7亿欧元（5.24亿美元）贷款中。Terras Group是一家总部位于德国的基础设施工程与建设服务提供商。这些人士因讨论非公开细节而不愿具名。
H.I.G. Capital managed to get the language included in the €470 million ($524 million) loan backing its majority stake in Terras Group, a German-headquartered provider of infrastructure engineering and construction services, according to people familiar with the deal who didn’t want to be identified discussing private details.
多年的强劲需求使私募股权公司得以逐步削弱贷款方的保护。但多位债权人表示，这一新条款比以往更为激进，自9月以来已出现在至少两笔杠杆收购融资中。
Years of strong demand have allowed private equity firms to chip away at lender protections. But several creditors said the new language goes further than usual and has appeared in at least two leveraged buyout financings since September.
“贷款方和投资者正在仔细审查发起人提出的条款，这些条款试图在人工智能相关问题上给予违约事件灵活性，”凯易律师事务所（Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP）合伙人兼欧洲杠杆融资业务主席杰里米·达菲表示。“这是杠杆融资文件领域中变化最快的一块。”人工智能正威胁颠覆每一种商业模式，以及围绕这些模式构建的债务结构。收购公司在大量押注软件即服务（SaaS）公司之后尤其面临风险，因为这些公司如今容易受到人工智能的冲击。
“Lenders and investors are closely reviewing language proposed by sponsors that seeks to permit event of default flexibility in connection with AI,” said Jeremy Duffy, a partner and chair of European leveraged finance at Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP. “It’s a fast-moving piece of the leveraged finance documentation pie.”Artificial intelligence is threatening to upend every business model, and the debt structures built around them. Buyout firms are particularly exposed after amassing a big bet on software-as-a-service firms now vulnerable to AI disruption.
不可抗力条款通常由公司在灾难发生时援引，以豁免合同义务——通常保留用于所谓的“天灾”，如飓风和地震、新冠疫情或9·11恐怖袭击。
A force majeure clause is typically invoked by companies to waive contractual obligations in a catastrophe — usually reserved for so-called acts of God like hurricanes and earthquakes, the Covid pandemic or the 9/11 terror attacks.
在本案中，H.I.G. Capital正在调整不可抗力条款的措辞，以便在Terras Group因AI影响及其他一系列情况而受到干扰时暂停违约计时。据知情人士透露，这些情况包括新冠疫情或任何其他大流行病、能源或资源价格大幅上涨、战争和恐怖主义。
In this case, H.I.G. Capital is adapting force majeure language to stop the clock on a default if Terras Group is disrupted by the impact of AI, and an array of other situations. These include Covid-19 or any other pandemic, a substantial increase of energy or resource pricing, war and terrorism, according to people familiar with the documentation.
一些债权人认为，拟议的条款破坏了借贷的基本原则：即使出了问题，你仍然期望能收回资金。
Some creditors argue that the proposed provisions undermine a basic premise of lending: even when things go wrong, you still expect to get your money back.
当公司未能支付利息时，通常会被给予一个宽限期（一般为30天），在宣布违约之前完成付款。此后，贷款人可以要求收回资金。
When companies miss an interest payment, they are usually allowed a grace period, typically 30 days, to make the payment before a default is called. After that, lenders can demand their money back.
从官方表述看，新条款旨在延长宽限期。但实际上，与疫情不同，AI冲击没有明确的结束日期。
Officially, the new provisions seek to extend grace periods. But in practice, AI disruption, unlike a pandemic, has no clear end date.
一位知情人士表示，H.I.G.的条款将允许Terras在其感受到AI影响期间，无限期推迟不支付利息的后果。该公司仍然欠付利息，但贷款人的救济措施被暂停。
H.I.G.’s clause would allow Terras to defer the consequences of not paying back interest for as long as it feels the impact of AI, said a person familiar with the deal. The company still owes interest, but lenders’ remedies are suspended.
知情人士称，贷款人成功地从贝恩资本为收购大众汽车重型柴油发动机部门Everllence控股权而进行的约47亿欧元（约合53亿美元）杠杆贷款交易中删除了类似措辞。
Lenders succeeded in having similar language struck from Bain Capital’s €4.7 billion-equivalent ($5.3 billion) leveraged-loan deal for its acquisition of a controlling stake in Volkswagen AG’s heavy diesel-engine unit Everllence, said the people.
市场对投资者保护的态度日益分化。私募股权发起人在其预期表现良好的信贷交易中采取激进姿态，但在软件等陷入困境的行业中，又重新将契约条款纳入交易。
The market’s approach to investor protections has become increasingly split. Private equity sponsors are being aggressive in cases where the credit deals they expect will perform well, but are re-inserting covenants to deals in troubled sectors like software.
H.I.G. Capital由宝维斯律师事务所的一组合伙人提供咨询，其中包括尼尔·萨奇德夫——一位颇具影响力的私募股权律师，他在鼓励收购公司削减融资中的债权人保护方面发挥了重要作用。
H.I.G. Capital was advised by a group of partners from law firm Paul, Weiss including Neel Sachdev, a powerful private equity lawyer who has played a big part in encouraging buyout firms to slash creditor protections in financing.
H.I.G.和贝恩的代表拒绝置评，萨奇德夫也未回复置评请求。
Representatives at H.I.G. and Bain declined to comment while Sachdev didn’t reply to a request for comment.