A US federal court has temporarily blocked Cable One from acquiring the 55% of Mega Broadband Investments Holdings (MBI) it does not already own. On October 9, 2026, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York entered a temporary restraining order (TRO) prohibiting the Phoenix-based operator from completing the buyout — at least for now.

The order came at the request of CoBank, ACB, a lender under Cable One's existing credit agreement. CoBank's complaint alleges that Cable One's payment of the MBI purchase price would constitute a constructive fraudulent transfer. The lender is seeking, among other remedies, a permanent injunction that would stop the company from closing the acquisition altogether.

Cable One, which trades on the NYSE under the ticker CABO, is not taking the challenge lightly.

What does the TRO actually change?

The restraining order was entered ex parte — before any hearing or court appearance by Cable One. That procedural detail matters: the company has not yet had the opportunity to argue its case before a judge.

Cable One's public response is blunt. The company said it "strongly believes CoBank's claims are incorrect as a matter of law" and intends to "vigorously dispute these claims and protect its interests." It cautioned, however, that it "makes no assurances regarding the timing or outcome of the pending proceedings."

The commercial mechanics of the deal offer Cable One some breathing room. Under the terms of the MBI acquisition agreement, the company is not obligated to close the transaction if — and for as long as — any legal restraint to closing remains in effect. In other words, the TRO does not put Cable One in breach of the purchase contract; it simply freezes the clock.

For now, the transaction is paused rather than dead. The ultimate question the Southern District of New York will have to resolve is whether funding the MBI buyout would strip value away from creditors such as CoBank — the core of the constructive fraudulent transfer claim.

How does Cable One plan to fund the deal?

The litigation is not the only moving part in Cable One's capital structure. In an update to a disclosure made last week, the company said it has made "substantial progress" toward a series of financing transactions intended to address the majority of its forthcoming capital needs.

The financing package involves three parties:

• GTCR LLC, the private equity firm;
• certain of Cable One's existing lenders;
• a consortium of leading private lending institutions.

No dollar figures, pricing or closing timelines for the financing were disclosed in the announcement. But the fact that Cable One is assembling funding from private credit sources and an existing financial sponsor — rather than solely from its syndicated bank group — frames the dispute with CoBank. Lenders under the existing credit agreement have an obvious interest in where the cash for a multibillion-dollar minority buyout goes, and CoBank has chosen to press that interest in court.

What happens next?

The immediate next step is a hearing. Because the TRO was granted without Cable One appearing, the company will get its first opportunity to contest the order and CoBank's underlying fraudulent transfer theory in front of the court. The outcome will determine whether the MBI acquisition proceeds, gets permanently enjoined, or sits in limbo while litigation runs its course.

Cable One has given no timeline for a resolution and explicitly declined to predict the result. What is certain is the sequencing: the financing talks with GTCR and the private lending consortium will continue in parallel, and any closing on MBI's remaining 55% stake waits on the Southern District of New York lifting or dissolving the restraining order.