Havel & Partners and the Frankfurt office of Latham & Watkins have advised a consortium of banks as initial purchasers of 3% senior secured notes in an aggregate principal amount of EUR 450 million due in 2026 issued by Progroup AG and a second consortium of banks in relation to several facilities agreements in an aggregate of more than EUR 600 million (equivalent). Mayer Brown's Dusseldorf office and bpv Braun Partners advised Progroup on German law and Czech law, respectively.
The bond issuance and the restatements of the facilities agreement were two parts of a large single transaction.
The consortium of banks that purchased the secured notes from Progroup consisted of Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft, HSBC Bank plc, Goldman Sachs International, and J.P. Morgan Securities plc.
The second consortium of banks that issued loans to Progroup consisted of Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft, HSBC Trinkaus & Burkhardt AG, Deutsche Bank Luxembourg S.A., Goldman Sachs International, Goldman Sachs International Bank, J.P. Morgan Securities plc, Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG, Goldman Sachs Lending Partners LLC, Goldman Sachs Bank USA, and Wilmington Trust (London) Limited.
According to Havel & Partners, Progroup decided to refinance its maturing bonds by way of a new tap under its existing bond program and made certain amendments (subject to a non-disclosure agreement) to its existing facilities agreements.
Progroup AG is a family-owned manufacturer of containerboard and corrugated board in Central Europe, with subsidiaries based in Germany, Czech Republic, Poland, and the UK — co-obligors under this cross-border transaction.
The Havel & Partners team consisted of Associate Michal Ranostaj and Junior Associate Petra Batovska.
The bpv Braun Partners team consisted of Partner David Vosol and Senior Associate Zuzana Stepankova.
