Financing

Our experience includes advising:

Arsenal Football Club in connection with the financing, real estate, planning and construction issues relating to its new stadium project.

British Airways on its US$1.7 billion long term multiple option facility which will be used to finance aircraft delivered over the next five years.

BHP Billiton on the financing of its US$7.3 billion acquisition of WMC Resources Limited with the cash bid funded by way of existing debt and new loan facilities totalling US$6.5 billion.

BHP Billiton on the committed bank financing facility of US$55 billion put in place in connection with the all share inter-conditional offers for Rio Tinto Limited and Rio Tinto plc.

BUPA on the reorganisation of its £320 million BUPA Hospitals whole business securitisation and on the cash collateralisation of this securitisation prior to the sale of BUPA Hospitals to the European private equity firm Cinven for £1.44 billion.

HM Treasury on most aspects of the financial difficulties of Northern Rock Plc.

Ineos on the acquisition financing for its US$9 billion purchase of Innovene. One of the world's biggest ever leveraged buyouts, the acquisition involved a total financing package of over EUR 9 billion (covering the purchase cost and a refinancing of Ineos's existing borrowings).

Punch Taverns in relation to the refinancing of its Punch Taverns Finance securitisation, involving the raising of an additional £825 million of debt finance via an issue of floating rate notes by Punch Taverns Finance Plc, the acquisition of a portfolio of 239 pubs and an associated intra-group reorganisation involving the transfer of 341 pubs. This transaction was ‘Corporate Deal of the Year - Europe’, International Securitisation Report Awards 2007.

Songbird Estates on its refinancing of the facilities for the acquisition of the Songbird Estates stake in Canary Wharf Group PLC. The new facility consisted of a term facility of approximately £800 million and a revolving credit facility of approximately £80 million.