New way of releasing your property assets without losing operational control

We have recently completed a groundbreaking GBP335m property sale and leaseback securitisation for a leading UK retailer. We are very excited about the benefits the structure of this deal has to offer other businesses. We anticipate this new structure may well become the blueprint for other corporate organisations looking to unlock the value of their property portfolios.

The benefits this structure offers are:

Significant savings on your finance costs - cheaper interest rates are possible in this type of financial structure securitisation along with potential tax benefits enables you to satisfy shareholders and to achieve a greater return on your assets.

Flexible asset management/flexible balance sheet management - this structure allows you to unlock the value of your property portfolios in a more flexible way than traditional sale and leaseback transactions, with the option of substituting properties or developing the premises at a minimal transaction cost. Properties may be substituted in or out of the portfolio.

Greater certainty to your organisation's financial planning through fixing your rents - rents are fixed, providing security for your organisation and for your investors.

Shows a response to increasing shareholder pressure for corporates to unlock the value of their property portfolio.

Is it for you?

This structure opens the door for corporates with property assets over GBP100m to access the capital markets utilising securitisation techniques. Leading corporates are waking up to the fact that their non-core prime assets are underperforming and are turning to cutting-edge securitisation techniques to unlock the value. This allows them to focus on core competencies - whilst still maintaining operational control.

But stamp duty changes in July mean that you need to act fast to maximise the benefit from this type of securitisation structure. After this time the savings will be reduced.

If you would like to know more about how this type of deal could benefit your business and would like to meet with a member of our team to discuss this further please contact Ashley Painter, structured finance partner on 0207 367 3135 (e-mail [email protected]) or Nick Brown, property partner on 0207 367 2103 (e-mail [email protected]).