Bank of China contributes $266 million USD to a $5 billion USD syndicated revolving credit facility to Linde plc for general corporate purposes

Project narrative

On March 26, 2019, a syndicate of 29 banks — including the Frankfurt Branch of Bank of China (BOC) — entered into a $5,000,000,000 USD syndicated revolving credit facility (RCF) agreement with Linde plc — an Ireland-incorporated company — and its subsidiary Praxair Inc., — a Delaware corporation — its subsidiary Linde AG, — a Germany-incorporated stock corporation — its subsidiary, Linde Finance B.V., — a Netherlands-incorporated private limited liability company — and Linde Intermediate Holding AG — a Germany-incorporated stock corporation — for general corporate purposes. This loan carried a maturity period of five years with two one-year extension options and a final maturity date of March 26, 2024. This loan could be drawn down in U.S. dollars, euros, and British pounds sterling, with an interest rate based on the USD LIBOR, EURIBOR, or GBP LIBOR plus a margin depending on the drawing. The EURIBOR margin and commitment fee ranged from 0.625% to 1.250% and 0.050% to 0.125% based on the credit ratings greater or equal to AA- or Aa3 to less than or equal to BBB or Baa2. Linde plc, Praxair, and Linde AG served as guarantors for this loan. BOC Frankfurt Branch committed $266,000,000 USD to the loan syndicate. In addition to BOC Frankfurt Branch, the following lenders contributed the respective amounts to the loan syndicate: Bank of America, N.A. ($355,500,000 USD, with a fronting commitment of $150,000,000 USD, a dollar swingline commitment of $50,000,000 USD, and a euro swingline commitment of €25,000,000 EUR), Citibank N.A. ($355,500,000 USD, with a fronting commitment of $150,000,000 USD, a dollar swingline commitment of $50,000,000 USD, and a euro swingline commitment of €25,000,000 EUR), HSBC Bank USA, National Association ($355,500,000 USD, with a fronting commitment of $150,000,000 USD, a dollar swingline commitment of $50,000,000 USD, and a euro swingline commitment of €25,000,000 EUR), Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch ($355,500,000 USD, with a fronting commitment of $150,000,000 USD, a dollar swingline commitment of $50,000,000 USD, and a euro swingline commitment of €25,000,000 EUR), Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft, Filiale Luxemburg ($266,000,000 USD), Credit Suisse AG, Cayman Islands Branch ($266,000,000 USD), JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. ($266,000,000 USD), Mizuho Bank, Ltd. ($266,000,000 USD), UniCredit Bank AG ($266,000,000 USD), Wells Fargo Bank, National Association ($266,000,000 USD), Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. New York Branch (BBVA) ($132,000,000 USD), Banco Santander, S.A., New York Branch ($132,000,000 USD), Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg (LBBW) ($132,000,000 USD), Société Générale S.A. (SocGen) ($132,000,000 USD), Standard Chartered Bank PLC ($132,000,000 USD), Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) ($132,000,000 USD), The Toronto-Dominion Bank ($132,000,000 USD), U.S. Bank National Association ($132,000,000 USD), Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ANZ) ($66,000,000 USD), Banco Bradesco S.A., New York Branch ($66,000,000 USD), Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank Deutschland (CACIB Deutschland) ($66,000,000 USD), ING Bank, a branch of ING-DiBa AG ($66,000,000 USD), Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen Girozentrale (Helaba) ($66,000,000 USD), MUFG Bank, Ltd. ($66,000,000 USD), Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB (publ) Frankfurt Branch (SEB) ($66,000,000 USD), The Bank of New York Mellon (BNY Mellon) ($66,000,000 USD), The Northern Trust Company ($66,000,000 USD), and Westpac Banking Corporation ($66,000,000 USD). Bank of America served as administrative agent. Citibank, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., and HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. served as syndication agents. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, Citibank, Deutsche Bank Securities, and HSBC Securities (USA) served as joint lead arrangers and joint bookrunners. BOC Frankfurt Branch, Commerzbank AG, Cayman Islands Branch of Credit Suisse AG, JPMorgan Chase Bank, Mizuho Bank, UniCredit Bank AG, and Wells Fargo Bank N.A. served as documentation agents.