Member Article

Manchester and Leeds commercial property company announces a £221 million refinancing deal

Bruntwood, the Manchester-based commercial property company who also operate Leeds offices, has secured a £221 million, five-year financing facility with a syndicate of four banks.

The deal completes a 12 month period in which Bruntwood has refinanced its entire £600m of debt.

In the final part of its refinance, Barclays, HSBC, The Royal Bank of Scotland and Santander UK have each provided £55.25m to refinance existing debt and to support Bruntwood’s future growth plans.

The deal was co-ordinated by Barclays, Pinsent Mason acted as legal advisers to the banks and Bruntwood were advised by Addleshaw Goddard.

HSBC also acted as sole Hedge Co-ordinator and Execution Bank for the restructuring of the underlying swap transactions, which were subsequently syndicated amongst the four lending banks. RBS continued it’s role as Facility Agent.

Bruntwood is a family owned and run commercial property company which offers office space, serviced offices, virtual offices, retail space and meeting rooms. With a portfolio of 110 buildings over four cities, Bruntwood accommodate over 2,000 customers and directly employs around 450 people.

Chris Oglesby, Bruntwood’s Chief Executive Officer said: “Bruntwood has always made long term sustainable growth its priority, rather than short-term commercial gain. As a result, it is companies such as ourselves that have emerged from the recession fitter and stronger. In a market where many property owners are constrained by excess debt, Bruntwood’s financial strength remains a major advantage.”

Kevin Crotty, Chief Financial Officer added: “12 months ago, Bruntwood had £435m of CMBS (Commercial Mortgage Backed Securitisation) debt and £165m of bank facilities to refinance against the backdrop of a CMBS market that was closed and banks that were reducing their exposure to property.

“Bruntwood has demonstrated its financial standing and its ability to innovate in raising capital. In December we raised £120m from L&G, only their second ever 10 year property loan.

“In February our bondholders unanimously approved the extension of £229m of our CMBS out to 2016. In July we issued a 7 year £50m retail bond (the first private property company to do so), and now we have completed an amazing 12 months with a 5 year £221m syndicated facility.”

“We are incredibly appreciative of the great support that our three existing banks (RBS, HSBC and Barclays) have continued to demonstrate and are very pleased to welcome Santander into the fold, creating the headroom to meet our future growth requirements.”

David Hardcastle, head of the Barclays Real Estate team in the North of England, commented on behalf of the Banks: “Bruntwood is growing thanks to their astute management team and by continuing to provide the finance to support their ongoing strategic plans, the banking group is confident Bruntwood will take full advantage of the growth opportunities in the markets they operate in.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .