On July 1, 2026, Belden Inc. (NYSE: BDC), the St. Louis-based connectivity and networking hardware maker, filed a Form 8-K reporting two events that arrived on the same day: the completion of its acquisition of the RUCKUS business and the creation of the senior secured term loan that paid for it. The filing pairs a closed transaction (Item 2.01) with a new direct financial obligation (Items 1.01 and 2.03), which makes it a clean read on both the size of the deal and the debt Belden took on to fund it.

The 8-K's explanatory note states that the filing is being made in connection with the consummation, on July 1, 2026, of the transactions contemplated by a Purchase Agreement dated April 29, 2026 between Belden and Vistance Networks, Inc., under which Belden acquired the RUCKUS reporting segment of Vistance. Under Item 2.01, the company reports what it paid at closing:

Upon consummation of the RUCKUS Acquisition, the Company paid approximately $1.87 billion in cash, net of cash acquired and subject to customary post-closing adjustments.— Belden Inc., Form 8-K (SEC), source

That figure — approximately $1.87 billion in cash, stated net of cash acquired — is the consideration the filing puts on the record, subject to the customary post-closing adjustments (typically working-capital and cash true-ups) that most cash acquisitions carry. The press release announcing completion of the acquisition is attached to the 8-K as Exhibit 99.1. RUCKUS is an enterprise wireless and networking business; the filing itself describes the acquired assets only as the "RUCKUS reporting segment" of the seller, so this article does not attribute product-line specifics beyond what the 8-K discloses.

The financing: a $1,850.0 million senior secured term loan

The mechanics of how Belden funded the purchase sit in Item 1.01. In connection with consummation of the RUCKUS Acquisition, on July 1, 2026 Belden, as borrower, together with certain of its U.S. subsidiaries as guarantors, entered into a Term Loan Credit Agreement with JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. as administrative agent and a syndicate of lenders. The filing states that the lenders provided Belden with a $1,850.0 million senior secured term loan credit facility on the terms set out in the agreement.

The pricing and structure are disclosed directly. The facility bears interest, at Belden's election, at term SOFR plus 2.25% or a base rate plus 1.25% per annum. It amortizes 0.25% per quarter and matures on July 1, 2033 — a roughly seven-year tenor. The obligations are guaranteed by certain of Belden's U.S. subsidiaries and are secured by a lien on substantially all of the assets of the company and the guarantors, subject to customary exceptions and exclusions. On the use of proceeds, the filing is explicit:

Proceeds of the Term Loan Credit Facility were utilized to fund the purchase price for the RUCKUS Acquisition, fees and expenses.— Belden Inc., Form 8-K (SEC), source

Read against the Item 2.01 consideration, the numbers line up in the way the filing frames them: a $1,850.0 million term loan sized close to the approximately $1.87 billion cash outlay, with proceeds directed to the purchase price plus fees and expenses. The 8-K does not disclose the exact split between purchase price and transaction costs, and none is invented here; it discloses only that the facility funded both.

Covenants, prepayment, and collateral

The Term Loan Credit Agreement carries the covenant architecture typical of a leveraged financing. The filing states it contains customary representations, warranties, and affirmative covenants, together with customary negative covenants that, among other things, limit the ability of Belden and its subsidiaries to incur additional indebtedness and liens; to engage in investments and dispositions; and to engage in transactions with affiliates. The agreement also limits certain payments, including dividends. Belden is permitted to voluntarily prepay borrowings, and the agreement may require mandatory prepayments of outstanding loans upon certain conditions, subject to thresholds and exceptions set out in the document. It also contains customary events of default; on the occurrence of one, the lenders may accelerate repayment.

The collateral and guarantee package is what distinguishes this as a secured facility rather than an unsecured note: the loans are guaranteed by certain U.S. subsidiaries and secured by a lien on substantially all assets of Belden and those guarantors. Belden notes separately that, in connection with the RUCKUS Acquisition, certain acquired entities were joined as guarantors under the company's existing revolving credit facility — folding the newly acquired business into the credit group that supports Belden's revolver as well as the new term loan.

What the filing puts on the record

Item 2.03 — creation of a direct financial obligation — simply incorporates the Item 1.01 description of the Term Loan Credit Agreement by reference, formally flagging the $1,850.0 million facility as a new balance-sheet obligation. Under Item 9.01, Belden states it intends to file the acquired business's financial statements and pro forma financial information by Form 8-K/A no later than 71 calendar days after this 8-K was required to be filed, so the segment-level revenue and margin detail that would let an investor size RUCKUS against the purchase price is not yet in the record. The full Term Loan Credit Agreement is filed as Exhibit 10.1, with schedules and certain confidential information omitted under Regulation S-K. The report was signed by Brian E. Anderson, Belden's Executive Vice President and Chief Legal and Risk Officer.

Taken on its own terms, the 8-K documents a completed, cash-funded acquisition and the secured term loan that financed it, disclosed together on the closing date. The consideration is stated at approximately $1.87 billion in cash net of cash acquired; the financing is a $1,850.0 million senior secured term loan priced at term SOFR plus 2.25% (or base rate plus 1.25%), amortizing 0.25% per quarter and maturing July 1, 2033, secured by substantially all assets of the borrower and its guarantors. The acquisition-accounting and pro forma disclosures that would show how the acquired business contributes against that debt are deferred to the forthcoming 8-K/A, which the company has committed to file within the Regulation S-K window.