Avco Asks OK of a $1-Billion Bond Offering

IRVINE — To fund its lending activities in five countries and to pay off debts coming due, Avco Financial Services Inc. said Wednesday that it is seeking federal approval to sell up to $1 billion of debt securities over the next 18 months to two years.

The amount of the so-called shelf registration is the highest ever sought by the Irvine company, exceeding its request for $900 million in bonds that it sought in March, 1991. The Securities and Exchange Commission must approve the filing before the company can begin issuing bonds.

Avco, a subsidiary of Textron Inc. in Providence, R.I., typically uses money raised on Wall Street to make consumer loans in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. In the first six months of this year, Avco earned $63.7 million from its lending and insurance operations.

The company, with about 1,000 employees, is looking for smaller quarters because the 250,000 square feet that it now occupies is more than it needs, said Ron Bukow, its chief financial officer.