Convertibles don't typically charge an interest payment. In simple terms, they will usually roll the interest into the principal. When they are converted to equity or when they are refinanced, you pay the principal and accrued interest.
OMG there are four errors there alone.
1. What you are talking about is a zero. Zeroes are not common in convertible debt. In fact they are rare, because they wouldn't make any sense. If, at time of conversion, the equity is worth less than the strike price, it is highly likely that the company does not have the cash to repay all that debt. I have never seen a zero convertible in a venture context. But what do I know, I only taught finance.
2. You are probably thinking of convertible preferred, which is completely different. It's more common in startups, but it is not debt. The payments are not interest but dividends, and investors generally speaking cannot force repayment (which is a feature, not a bug). The fact that Apollo wanted debt means they were not interested in a zero-coupon structure.
3. Learn accounting. Even if this was a zero coupon bond, the interest still has to be accounted for on a rolling basis. Basic accounting principles -- and I mean BASIC -- are that lumpy but recurring expenses require depreciation, amortization or (in this case) imputation. You are accusing others of lacking financial literacy when you appear not to understand a concept taught in the second week of accounting class.
Like the other contrarian trolls, you have no idea how dramatically you give yourself away. Because you know nothing, you can't recognize knowledge. We can. And you have none.
4. This is a minor point, but the whole point of refinancing corporate debt is to avoid paying the principal. It gets rolled over.
What you're describing is a home mortgage. LOL. Hate to tell you buddy, but there's a whole world out there. You're only living in a tiny, tiny sliver. What is true of your rambler is not true of corporate debt.
