Banking & Finance

Banking and Finance

Our Banking and Finance practice can rely on its wide ranging expertise in both domestic and international mandates, acting for commercial banks, international development banks, investment banks, alternative lenders such as debt funds, multilateral banks and other financial institutions.

We advise lenders and borrowers on the full spectrum of secured and unsecured commercial lending transactions, including real estate finance, fund finance, leveraged acquisition finance, asset-based and cash flow finance, and other corporate lending transactions.

We advise on multi-currency, cross-border borrower and guarantor, and cross-border collateral issues arising in multi-jurisdictional financings with a specific focus on Luxembourg. We also represent clients in mezzanine finance transactions that typically involve complex intercreditor and equity holder arrangements.

We deal regularly with complex intercreditor and equity holder arrangements in these transactions and offer clients a keen market awareness of differing standards and market trends for debt and subordination terms.

Real Estate Finance

We have significant expertise and experience in real estate financing deals. This includes the representation of real estate actors both on the lender and borrower side, but also assistance to issuers, underwriters, and investors. Most of our work focuses on international transactions and therefore is cross-border in nature, with many transactions being complex in their structure.

In addition to our general financing practice, we have developed specialties in the representation of Belgian, French, Luxembourg, German, UK and US banks and the financing of REITs

We have advised a significant number of investment funds investing in real estate in Europe and Latin America.

In that respect, our range of services notably includes advising on real estate investment or development finance, student accommodation or hotel financings or refinancings, PRS / build-to-rend financings, facilities to high-net-worth individuals buying residential properties, restructuring and enforcement of securities.

Fund Finance

We are also acting in the domain of fund financing and advise agents, lead arrangers and lenders as well as sponsors and private equity firms on all forms of financing for Luxembourg-based investment funds. Such financing deals include subscription line, capital call and NAV facilities.

In addition, our range of services include investor call bridge facilities to assist funds in meeting investment obligations, or equity bridge facilities to provide funding pending first or final close of a fund. pending bringing co-investment partners into an investment or to provide alternative financing solutions for an investment. We also have experience with “equity commitment” finance structures where direct borrowing by a fund or the giving of guarantees by a fund is not possible, as well as leverage and borrowing base facilities for asset acquisitions (including debt investments, partnership interests and real estate investment portfolios), or co-investment facilities, to support the co-investment commitment of general partners or fund executives.

Leveraged Finance

Our Banking and Finance practice also covers acquisition financing and other sponsor-driven financings such as dividend recaps. On a regular basis, we help our clients to structure and implement various form of leveraged finance transactions, such as traditional senior/mezzanine financings, unitranche financing and super senior/senior financing.

Well versed with the customs and terms of LBO-financings, we are in an excellent position to provide advice on financings efficiently for our clients.

We can also seamlessly cover international aspects of leveraged finance transactions such as the granting of cross-border security or guarantor accessions through our network of specialized law firms in other jurisdictions with whom we collaborate on a regular basis.

Debt Finance

We advise on all aspects of the capital structure. We negotiate senior secured and unsecured syndicated, club, and bilateral credit facilities and asset-based loans.

Our experience encompasses all related legal and business issues, including securities and corporate law matters, derivatives, accounting and regulatory matters, bankruptcy and insolvency considerations, and security interest questions.

Capital Markets

We represent all types of market participants in debt and equity securities offerings and accommodate international standards to Luxembourg law and regulatory requirements.

We list bonds and equity instruments of various types of investment fund vehicles on the Luxembourg stock exchange. Our capital markets clients include issuers, underwriters, investors, selling shareholders, depositaries, and trustees.

We advise clients on the full range of equity and debt securities transactions, including eurobond offerings by corporations and sovereigns,

medium-term note (MTN) programs, high-yield debt offerings, convertible and exchangeable bond offerings, initial public offerings (IPOs), global depositary receipts (GDRs) programs, and offerings of Sukuk (Islamic bonds).

Our transactions include Luxembourg registered offerings, debt and equity private placements, secondary and follow-on offerings, and liability management exercises. We have experience with combined transactions on a number of markets such as the New York Stock Exchange, Euronext, the Warsaw Stock Exchange or the Luxembourg Stock Exchange.

Insolvency Financing

VANDENBULKE also serves the interests of international institutional real estate lenders, holding troubled real estate loans and mortgage-backed securities through Luxembourg SPVs as well as borrowers seeking to restructure distressed debt, and investors who own or desire to acquire distressed real estate and real estate loans.

VANDENBULKE has acquired extensive experience in the following :

Representation of both borrowers and new equity sources in negotiating the recapitalization of borrowers as part of an overall financial restructuring strategy.

Representation of real estate lenders, special servicers, and borrowers in loan restructurings, forbearances, bankruptcy proceedings, judicial and non-judicial foreclosures, receivership actions, and deficiency collection proceedings.
Defense of lenders with respect to the many types of claims arising from distressed loans, including lender liability.
Representation of lenders and investors as owners of foreclosed real estate, with respect to a full array of asset management, leasing, and disposition issues as well as the formation and operation of new entities for lenders in syndicated facilities to act as owners of foreclosed collateral.