Further Financing

RNS Number : 3914R

Globalworth Real Estate Inv Ltd

26 June 2015

 

Globalworth Real Estate Investments Limited

Globalworth closes further €45m financing facility with Oak Hill and York

Guernsey, 26 June 2015: Globalworth Real Estate Investments Ltd. (AIM: GWI) ("Globalworth" or the "Company"), the real estate investment company targeting opportunities in Romania, is pleased to announce that further to the short-term holding company level secured debt €55 million facility announced on 31 March 2015 ("Facility A"), it has secured a further €45 million short-term holding company level secured debt facility ("Facility B") together with certain amendments and restatements to the existing debt facility agreement (together, the "€100m Facilities Agreement").

Facility B has been provided by subsidiaries of funds managed by Oak Hill Advisors (Europe), L.P. and certain of its advisory affiliates ("Oak Hill") and York Capital Management Global Advisors, LLC, through York Global Finance Offshore BDH (Luxembourg) S.à r.l. ("York" and, together with Oak Hill, the "Lenders").

The Directors believe that the Company will be able to repay the €100m Facilities Agreement from the proceeds of future debt and/or equity capital raisings. The €100m Facilities Agreement is consistent with the Company's stated plans to use debt financing for acquisitions and general corporate purposes, which can include short-term bridge holding level debt financings as was the case in February 2014 with the granting of the €65 million debt facility from UBS, which was acquired by York and Oak Hill in April 2014 and converted to equity in December 2014 in accordance with its amended terms.

Apart from funding the development of Bucharest One, Facility B can be used for general corporate purposes, including acquisitions and funding its ongoing development projects.

Oak Hill has subscribed for €30,000,000 of Facility B, and as such holds €66,666,000 of the €100m Facilities Agreement. Alexis Atteslis is a non-executive director of the Company and Oak Hill's appointed director.

York has subscribed for €15,000,000 of Facility B, and as such holds €33,334,334 of the €100m Facilities Agreement. Akbar Rafiq is a non-executive director of the Company and York's appointed director.

The entering into of Facility B by Oak Hill and York (together with certain amendments and restatements to the existing debt facility agreement) constitutes a related party transaction under Rule 13 of the AIM Rules for Companies. The Directors (other than Mr Atteslis and Mr Rafiq) consider, having consulted with Panmure Gordon, that the terms of this transaction are fair and reasonable insofar as the Company's shareholders are concerned.

For further information visit www.globalworth.com or contact:  

Panmure Gordon (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker)                              Tel: [phone]

Andrew Potts

Cantor Fitzgerald Europe (Joint Broker)                                                                Tel: [phone]

Rick Thompson

David Foreman

Milbourne (Public Relations)                                                                                     Tel: [phone]

Tim Draper

About Globalworth

Globalworth Real Estate Investments Limited is a real estate investment company founded by real estate investor and developer Ioannis Papalekas currently focused on taking advantage of investment opportunities in Romania. The Company is Guernsey incorporated and has been declared by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission to be a registered closed-ended collective investment scheme. The Company's shares were admitted to trading on AIM in July 2013.

The Romanian market offers an attractive real estate investment proposition in the medium-to-long term. Globalworth believes that global investor capital flows will gradually move from markets considered as "safe havens" to more peripheral markets such as Romania in search of higher yielding investments. As a result, Romania should, in due course, become a more attractive destination for a wide investor audience. Globalworth anticipates holding an early mover advantage in and benefitting from this gradual shift in investor sentiment.

Key changes to and additional information on the €100m Facilities Agreement

The €100m Facilities Agreement expires on 31 July 2016.  Facility B can be used for the general corporate purposes and for its ongoing development programme including the development of Bucharest One, and as part of the amendments to the €100m Facilities Agreement, Lenders' consent for any currently uncompleted acquisitions has been removed.

The €100m Facilities Agreement also provides for an issue premium, a cash coupon and a repayment premium which can vary depending on different repayment events and timing.  The €100m Facilities Agreement may be prepaid (as expected), but the provision that previously provided that Facility A  may be required by the Lenders to be repaid four months after drawdown has been removed. 

The total financing cost of the €100m Facilities Agreement would range between approximately €13.8 million and approximately €16.8 million. In the unlikely event that the €100m Facilities Agreement is outstanding for its full term, the total financing cost could increase to approximately €22.3 million.

The €100m Facilities Agreement also contains representations and warranties, covenants, undertakings (including in relation to required disposals) and various other events of default.

Update on Mr Papalekas

Further to the announcement on 19 December 2014, Mr Papalekas and the Company's UK lawyers (Sidley Austin LLP) and Romanian lawyers (Cazacu and Associatii) have kept the Board informed of the ongoing situation regarding the criminal investigation in Romania. Based on those ongoing reports Mr Papalekas has informed the Board that he expects to be formally released from the investigation soon.

 

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