Banking and Finance
Ashfords' Banking and Finance Team operates as part of the Corporate and Commercial Group on complex and innovative financing transactions at both a regional and national level. We act for banks, government agencies and corporates on a variety of bilateral and syndicated lending transactions. Our expertise includes acquisition finance, project finance, secured lending relating to investment property and developments, trade finance, asset based lending, invoice discounting and general refinancings.
- Property and development finance;
- Acquisition finance;
- General corporate financing and re-financing;
- Commercial banking;
- Asset finance and invoice discounting;
- Investment funds;
- Quasi-equity and debt structuring; and
- Banking litigation (including lender claims).
Recent work undertaken includes acting for:
- Advising Lloyds TSB Bank plc on its c. £30m refinancing of Somerset Care Limited;
- National Australia Bank on its funding of the construction and operation of the Hengrove Leisure Centre in Bristol, estimated to cost £30 million;
- Centrax Industries Limited on the refinancing of the Centrax group companies with Lloyds TSB Bank plc, comprising £50 million term loan, overdraft, revolving credit and bond facilities;
- Northamptonshire County Council on its loan to Silverstone Estates Limited to fund the redevelopment of the track, pit and paddock areas at Silverstone Circuits;
- HSBC Bank plc on its financing of Kandytoys Limited in respect of the acquisition of a partnership business and subsequent property and development finance;
- Lloyds TSB Bank plc on its £3.4m financing of Flybe Limited's Training Academy at Exeter Airport;
- Lloyds TSB Bank plc on the acquisition of Woodbury Park Hotel, Golf & Country Club Limited;
- South West Ventures and Finance South West on their debt and equity investments into Cornish Sea Salt Company Limited;
- Tamares Limited on various financings, including the refinancing of City property near the Bank of England and subsequent sale to OS insurance company via Jersey Unit Trust structure, the syndicated financing of large multi-tenanted London property, and the acquisition of a City office building;
- A major European Bank on an international banking dispute in relation to derivatives;
- Bank of Scotland plc on the acquisition by IQD Frequency Products Limited of the commodity products business of Rakon Europe Limited; and
- Santander UK plc (formerly Abbey National plc) on a refinancing for Southern Healthcare (Wessex) Limited involving multiple nursing homes.
Clients praise the team's "commercially minded lawyers" who are "excellent communicators."
Chambers Guide to the Legal Profession, 2011 Edition
