Banking & Finance Factsheet
Edwin Coe’s specialist Banking & Finance practice focuses on debt funding and investment for projects and the acquisition of assets and general corporate purposes.
The team comprises lawyers who have many years’ knowledge and experience of domestic and international financial and banking transactions (some involving a cross-border element), including senior and mezzanine lending, acquisition and leveraged finance and private equity investment.
We regularly represent banks, funds, institutional lenders, individual and corporate borrowers and investors in transactions involving:
- funding and corporate acquisitions and development
- refinancing of commercial and residential real estate.
We can also advise on related issues such as:
- taxation
- compliance
- regulatory requirements
- participations and assignments
- syndications
- restructurings.
All transactions are partner-led and handled by qualified and dedicated specialists. We aim to provide advice which is not only accurate and comprehensive but also practical and commercial, proactively seeking solutions to questions which arise.
Examples of our work
- Advised the buyers (as borrowers) in respect of financing to a consortium led by specialist investment firm, Auréa Group for the acquisition of The Body Shop from a private equity group, effectively rescuing the brand from administration.
- Advised a prominent American hedge fund, a long-standing client of the team, on general corporate, senior refinancing and acquisition financings.
- Acted for an investor in a UK based hedge fund, involving both loan and equity shares.
- Advised on standard form documentation for loan and security documents.
- Acted for the lenders on a £7.9 million loan facility secured against sixteen newly built houses in Slough that are let on a short-term basis to provide housing for Local Authorities tenants on unusual and bespoke occupancy arrangements
- Advised CPI Property Group, a leading European landlord, on a £35.5 million facility from Rothschild & Co, for the purchase of an ultra-luxury residential real estate portfolio.
- Acted for the lender on a £29 million refinance and planning payment funding in relation to a mix of freehold leasehold properties located in Aldgate East.
- Acted for the borrower on a £19 million development financing in respect of the development and conversion of Grade II-listed buildings into luxury modern homes located in West London.
- Advised the borrower on a £11.8 million Islamic financing from the Bank of London and Middle East Plc, secured against student housing located in Kingston.
- Advised the restructuring group of a UK clearing bank on the validity and enforceability of its facility and security documentation in respect of Europe’s leading digital cinematography and hire facility business (providing kit and crew to some of Britain’s best loved television shows such as ‘Made in Chelsea’ and ‘Celebrity Island’), and subsequent advice, review and drafting documentation in relation to the further equity investment into the customer’s business (including various loan notes and security documents, joint intercreditor deed, and supplemental loan agreements), and to advise the bank generally in respect of the transaction.
- Acted for the lender on a £5.71 million acquisition and development loan for a freehold vacant 50,000 sq ft office building on a three-acre site in Hainault, northeast London, with planning application pending. Conditional on receipt of planning.
- Acted for the English incorporated borrower of an investment arm of an overseas shipping and real estate group, on an £11 million financing from Deutsche Bank to fund the acquisition of a luxury high value Hampstead commercial property.
- Advised the sellers in relation to deferred consideration and earn-outs payable in the form of convertible loan notes in respect of a £15.2 million sale of an event merchandising company to a Danish private equity group.
- Drafted and advised on a full suite of template loan documentation (based on the LMA) for a leading pan-European private credit and real estate investment manager with €110 billion of AUM. Three sets of documents prepared for three lending entities (including a recently acquired UK incorporated fund), all focused on specialist real estate loans ranging from £10 million to £300 million.
For further information please contact a member of the Banking & Finance team
