Bank of China contributes to debt restructuring — via a one-year maturity extension in 2016 — to a £450 million GBP syndicated revolving credit facility for the Great Portland Estates 2014 Refinancing Project (Linked to Record ID#99885 and #99886)

Project narrative

In October 2014, a syndicate of seven banks — including Bank of China (BOC) — signed a £450.0 million GBP syndicated revolving credit facility (RCF) agreement with Great Portland Estates plc (GPE) — a British property development and investment company — for the Great Portland Estates 2014 Refinancing Project. This loan carried a maturity period of five years with a two-year extension option at GPE's request, a final maturity date in October 2019, a floating interest rate based LIBOR plus a margin of 105 basis points (bps) (ranging out to 165 bps based on the borrower's gearing), and was unsecured. The proceeds of this loan were to be used by the borrower to replace (refinance) £350 million GBP and £150 million GBP facilities which were due to mature in November 2015 and February 2017, respectively and for the borrower's day-to-day working capital requirements. Record ID#99885 captures BOC's contribution. This was BOC's first instance of lending to GPE. In addition to BOC, the following lenders contributed to the loan syndicate: Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Banco Santander S.A., HSBC Bank, Lloyds Bank plc, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank (CACIB), and Wells Fargo Bank N.A.. Then, in October 2015, the lending syndicate — still including BOC — entered into an amendment agreement with GPE; in this agreement, based on the extension-option in the original loan contract, the lenders extended the maturity period of the £450 million GBP RCF by 12 months (one year) — for a new final maturity date of October 2020. Record ID#99886 captures this extension. Then, in October 2016, the lending syndicate — still including BOC — entered into an another amendment agreement with GPE; in this agreement, based on the extension-option in the original loan contract, the lenders again extended the maturity period of the £450 million GBP RCF by 12 months (one year) — for a new final maturity date of October 2021. Record ID#99887 captures this extension. Then, in October 2018, a syndicate of six banks — including BOC — entered into a £450.0 million GBP syndicated RCF agreement with GPE for the Great Portland Estates 2018 Refinancing Project. This loan carried a maturity of five years (a final maturity date of October 2023) with an option to extend up to seven years (a final maturity date of October 2025), a floating interest rate based on LIBOR plus a margin of 92.5 basis points (bps), and was unsecured. This RCF was an amendment and extension of GPE's £450 million GBP RCF signed in October 2014, replacing (refinancing) that facility. The proceeds of this RCF were to be used for the borrower's day-to-day working capital requirements. Record ID#92271 captures BOC's contribution. Then, in July 2019, the lending syndicate — still including BOC — entered into an amendment agreement with GPE; in this agreement, based on the extension-option in the original loan contract, the lenders extended the maturity period of the £450 million GBP RCF by 12 months (one year) — for a new final maturity date of October 2024. Record ID#99888 captures this extension. Then, on January 31, 2020, a syndicate of five banks — including BOC — signed a £450.0 million GBP syndicated sustainability-linked RCF agreement with GPE for the Great Portland Estates 2020 Refinancing Project. This loan carried a maturity period of five years (a final maturity date of January 2025) with a two-year extension option (a final maturity date of January 2027), was unsecured, and carried a floating interest rate based upon LIBOR plus a margin of 90.0 bps (ranging to 150 bps based on the borrower's gearing), plus or minus 2.5 bps subject to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)-related Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) reviewed annually. The three KPIs were based on the borrower's reduction of its portfolio's energy intensity by 40% by 2030, the reduction of embodied carbon (to net zero) in its new developments and refurbishments, and the increase of the biodiversity net gain across the portfolio. This RCF was an amendment and extension of GPE's £450 million GBP RCF signed in October 2018, replacing (refinancing) that facility. The proceeds of this RCF were to be used for the borrower's day-to-day working capital requirements and general corporate purposes. Record ID#99889 captures BOC's contribution. Then, in November 2021, the lending syndicate — still including BOC — entered into an amendment agreement with GPE; in this agreement, based on the extension-option in the original loan contract, the lenders extended the maturity period of only £400 million GBP of the £450 million GBP RCF by 12 months (one year) — for a new final maturity date of January 2026. Record ID#99890 captures this extension. Then, in January 2022, the lending syndicate — still including BOC — entered into an amendment agreement with GPE; in this agreement, based on the extension-option in the original loan contract, the lenders extended the maturity period of only £400 million GBP of the £450 million GBP RCF by 12 months (one year) — for a new final maturity date of January 31, 2027. Additionally, the interest rate was modified (as of December 2021): while the margin remained unchanged, LIBOR was replaced with SONIA }. Record ID#99891 captures this extension. Then, in April 2023, the remaining lender that had not participated in the two maturity extensions extended the maturity of £50 million GBP of the £450 million GBP to January 2027, in line with the other lenders. Then, in October 2023, a three-bank syndicate — BOC, NatWest, and Lloyds — signed a £250 million GBP term loan agreement with GPE for general corporate purposes. This loan carried a maturity period of three years with a two-year extension option, carried an interest rate based upon SONIA plus a margin of 175 basis points (bps), and was unsecured. This loan was to support GPE's general liquidity as it implemented its development programme. The borrower and lenders planned to incorporate ESG-linked KPIs into the loan to align it with the existing £450 million GBP RCF. Record ID#99892 captures BOC's contribution.