Redcliffe Partners and Clifford Chance have advised ED & F Man Treasury Management plc, the treasury management arm of ED & F Man, a UK-based international commodities trader, on Ukrainian law aspects on the refinancing and restructuring of nearly USD 1.5 billion of debt and raising an extra USD 320 million in working capital. Allen & Overy and Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld advised the scheme creditors and note-holders, respectively, and Asters advised the unidentified lenders on Ukrainian law aspects of the deal.
According to Redcliffe Partners, the working capital was raised from “the scheme creditors via the scheme of arrangement under part 26 of the Companies Act 2006 sanctioned by the High Court on 9 September 2020. The scheme is designed to restructure certain aspects of the group’s existing debts (including credit facilities as well as private placement notes) through the amendment and restatement of those instruments with a common extended maturity date and covenants under the umbrella of the common terms agreement with the scheme lenders. In addition, the arrangements provide the scheme creditors with the opportunity to participate in new money debt to be provided to the borrower to finance the general corporate and working capital purposes of the group, including the peak seasonal working capital requirements and the trading activities of the commodities business line.”
