A Swedish cable company acquired by private equity firm BC Partners in July has turned to a controversial form of financing to help pay for the deal, in a clear sign of the impact of a sluggish high-yield bond market on companies trying to raise capital.

Com Hem, which was acquired by BC Partners in July for €1.9bn, has tweaked the €1.1bn financing package backing the buyout to include a roughly €100m payment-in-kind facility. The PIK replaced part of Com Hem's unsecured bridge financing, which was originally expected to be refinanced with a high-yield bond, according to two sources familiar with the matter.