Hammerson has secured a new unsecured revolving credit facility from nine banks at a margin of just 80bps.
The retail specialist REIT has agreed £415m of finance on a five-year deal, which may be extended up to seven years on each bank’s approval and Hammerson’s request.
BNP Paribas acted as coordinator for the facility. BNP Paribas, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Barclays, HSBC, JP Morgan, Santander and Royal Bank of Scotland were appointed mandated lead arrangers and bookrunners. Commitments were also provided by Deutsche Bank and Chang Hwa Commercial Bank.
This new facility will refinance the existing £505m revolving credit facility that would have matured in April 2016 and carried an initial margin of 150 basis points. The existing facility will be cancelled, resulting in a net reduction of £90m of undrawn facilities.
Timon Drakesmith, chief financial officer, said: “This new transaction is another milestone on our journey to further reduce Hammerson’s cost of debt. Credit markets are strong and we appreciate the support of our bank group in arranging this attractive loan facility. We have structured the refinancing to achieve a blend of optimal liquidity, lower running cost and longer maturity.”
