Pierre-Nicolas Ferrand

Overview

Pierre-Nicolas Ferrand is a partner in the Finance practice.

He primarily focuses on acquisition financing, real estate financing and corporate financing, as well as refinancing; transactions for which he advises financial institutions, investment funds and industrial groups.

Pierre-Nicolas Ferrand is also very active in insolvency matters, amicable proceedings as well as debt restructuring. As part of these procedures, both French and cross-border, he advises distressed companies, their shareholders, creditors, investors or business buyers, and works alongside investment funds, turnaround funds, banks or industrial groups.

Before becoming a lawyer, he practiced as an assistant trustee in bankruptcy in Paris. This unique feature, his experience as well as his excellent knowledge of financings enable him to comprehensively address the strategic challenges facing his clients and thus protect their interests, whether they are distressed companies, creditors or investors.

Experience

Leveraged finance

Credit Suisse, Bank of America, Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas, Lloyds Bank et Santander as Administrative Agent and Security Agent in connection with the addition of a €375,000,000 incremental senior secured facility to the existing cross-border multicurrency credit agreement to the INEOS Group; and in connection with the simultaneous issue of €325,000,000 senior secured notes due 2026 by INEOS Finance plc.
Paragon Partners on the refinancing for the acquisition of Castolin Eutectic.
Hayfin Capital Management on the financing for Paragon Partners’ acquisition of WEKA.
LBO France in connection with the acquisition of Dutscher group.
Equistone on the financing of the acquisition of Heras, a leading provider of perimeter protection solutions, from CRH plc, a global building materials group.
King Street Capital Management in connection with the acquisition of FC Girondins de Bordeaux and the subsequent reorganization of its capital through General Capital Partners' stake.
Barclays Capital in connection with the financing of Ineos group.
A bank consortium (Commerzbank, ING Bank, Landesbank Baden-Württemberg, Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen and Norddeutsche Landesbank) on a long-term credit facility for Allgeier SE. The revolving credit line amounts to €228 million and provides long-term financing for Allgeier Group.
HF Private Debt and Deutsche Bank as lenders on the financing of the acquisition of four European engineering companies of the Danish NNE A/S by TTP AG and its subsidiary TTP GmbH. The firm also advised on the financing of the cash compensation for a squeeze-out merger, where TRIPLAN AG, as transferring company, was merged with TTP AG, as surviving company.
Goldman Sachs International on the financing of Cinven’s acquisition of INSEEC from Apax.
Natixis Securities Americas LLC in connection with the refinancing of Bridgepoint’s stake in Flexitallic.
EMERAM’s portfolio company frostkrone Tiefkühlkost GmbH on the financing of the acquisition of Rite Stuff Foods, Inc., a U.S.-based potato snacks producer.
Société Générale in connection with the signing of an agreement to sell SG Finans AS, its equipment finance and factoring activities in Norway, Sweden and Denmark, to Nordea Finance, the asset based finance and factoring arm of Nordea Bank.
Silverfleet in the financing of the acquisition of 7days Group (facility agreement).
Morgan Stanley Senior Funding, Inc., as administrative agent, on an amendment to Sensata Technologies B.V. and Sensata Technologies Finance Company, LLC’s existing $1.34 billion financing consisting of a $420 million revolving credit facility and a $918 million senior secured term loan B facility.
Deutsche Bank AG, BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Natixis and Société Générale on Loxam S.A.S.’s €1.4 billion high yield notes offering.
BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole CIB and Deutsche Bank, London Branch, as joint book-runners, on Loxam’s €500 million high yield notes offering.
Trail Capital in connection with the acquisition of Electropoli through a LBO.
Trail Capital in connection with the refinancing of the senior debt of Sepur Group.
Nexans on the signature of a €600 million Revolving Credit Facility with 11 of its core banks for a period of five years, thereby extending the tenor of the Group’s access to liquidity until 2023.
Groupe Ecore in its inaugural offering of €255 million senior secured floating rate notes due 2023 and the company in connection with a new €40 million revolving credit facility.
Sociéte Générale on the sale of Euro Bank to Bank Millennium.
Siparex on its acquisition of a significant minority stake in NG Travel.
The lenders in connection with a multi-jurisdiction corporate financing of $40 million for Adare Pharmaceuticals Group.
Bolloré in connection with a syndicated corporate financing of €1.3 billion.
Florac on the unitranche financing in connection with the acquisition of Brico Privé SAS.
Morgan Stanley and Cortland Capital Market Services LLC in connection with the financing of groupe Aqua through a credit first lien for an amount of $375 million and a credit second lien for an amount in principal of $150 million including a portability clause.
French companies of groupe Polytan in connection with the refinancing of the group indebtedness.
French companies of Corden Pharma in connection with the refinancing of the groupe’s financial indebtedness.
Bank of New York Mellon plc in connection with the refinancing of groupe Inovyn’s indebtedness.
Frostkrone Group, a portfolio company of Emeram Capital Partners and one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of frozen convenience food, in connection with the financing of the acquisition of Piz’Wich, a specialist manufacturer of on-the-go frozen snack products.
Nomura as lead arranger on a €1 billion-equivalent financing backing Caisse de Dépôt et Placement du Quebec's (CDPQ) acquisition of a significant minority stake in French medical diagnostics company Sebia; in 2019, on the refinancing of part (PIK Tranche) of the initial financing implemented in 2017, and in 2020 on a new partial refinancing of the acquisition.
Equistone Partners Europe and its portfolio company Sports Group on its financing for the acquisition of AstroTurf, a leading US manufacturer of artificial turf for sports and leisure facilities.
Interoute Finco plc on its new €275 million term loan facility agreement and its new €75 million revolving credit facility agreement.
J.P. Morgan, BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank and Oddo, in connection with Autodis S.A.’s offering of its €260 million 4.375% senior secured fixed rate notes due 2022 and €260 million senior secured floating rate notes due 2022.

Project Finance

PFI Awards 2019 | Guinea Alumina Corporation – The Largest Project In West Africa since the 1970s And A Major Milestone In Financing For Mining Projects In Developing Countries - Guinea Alumina Corporation (and its parent company, Emirates Global Aluminium, which is owned by Mubadala and DUBAL) in connection with the $1.6 billion development and financing of a bauxite mine in the Republic of Guinea.

Real Estate Finance

Société Générale, HSBC and CACIB, as Mandated Lead Arrangers, for the financing of the acquisition by a company affiliated with Apollo Global Management, Inc. of a portfolio of 31 hypermarkets and supermarkets properties valued at €465 million.
Société Générale, as arranger and underwriter, in connection with a €100 million term loan facility agreement for the financing of an acquisition program of residential properties in France by vehicles sponsored by GIC and managed by CDC Habitat.
BECM on the refinancing of Gecina, a group that owns, manages and develops property holdings worth 19.3 billion euros at end-2018. This refinancing takes the form of a new revolving credit facility of € 250 million.
BNP Paribas in connection with the financing of the acquisition by Barings Real Estate Advisors of logistics development at the Haies Blanches park in Coudray-Montceaux in the Ile de France region of France.
Deutsche Pfandbriefbank AG (PBB), in connection with the financing of the acquisition by a Belgian group of an office and commercial building located rue Saint-Honoré in Paris, France.
Société Générale in connection with the financing of the acquisition by KIS of Novartis French headquarters.
BNP Paribas as arranger, initial lender and agent on the acquisition financing of a €158 million retail park in the Paris region by Assurances du Crédit Mutuel Vie, Crédit Agricole Assurances and Frey.
Deutsche Pfandbriefbank AG (PBB), as arranger, initial lender and agent on the acquisition financing of a €145 million portfolio of retail parks by Crédit Agricole Assurances and Frey.
BECM in connection with the 2017 €100 million refinancing of Gecina, a real estate listed company.
BECM in connection with the 2016 €100 million refinancing of Group Altarea, a real estate listed company.
BECM in connection with the refinancing of the existing term loan and revolving facilities of Altarea group.
BECM in connection with the refinancing for the acquisition by an OPCI structure of a real estate retail portfolio of 70 shops located in various cities in France.
BNP Paribas, as arranger, agent and lender alongside ARKEA Banque Entreprises et Institutionnels, Crédit Agricole Ile de France and INVESTIMO regarding the execution of a €210 million revolving credit facility agreement with a 3-year maturity with French REIT Société de la Tour Eiffel (SIIC).
Natixis, BNP Paribas, BECM and Crédit Agricole CIB as lenders and arrangers on a €400 million secured refinancing for ANF Immobilier, a listed real estate investment company which owns a portfolio of French retail, office, hotel and residential properties in Marseille, Lyon and Bordeaux.
Deutsche Pfandbriefbank AG (PBB), as lender and arranger, on the financing of the acquisition by Crédit Agricole Assurances from Colony Capital group of the new Carrefour France’s headquarters.

Restructuring & Insolvency

CWT in connection with its debt restructuring, comprising (i) an exchange offer, (ii) a consent solicitation, (iii) an issuance of rights offering units consisting of $125 million senior secured priming notes and shares of common equity of a newly-created holding company, (iv) an equity contribution by the Company’s principal shareholder and (v) an amendment and restatement of the Company’s revolving credit facility.
Société Ivoirienne de Raffinage (SIR) as creditor in connection with the judicial reorganisation and judicial liquidation proceedings triggered in France (Bobigny) against the various entities of the NOX group.
Sagemcom in connection with the bankruptcy of MDA, one of the France largest TMT products distributors.
Masdar (Mubadala) in connection with the conciliation proceedings triggered by the entities of CNIM Group, a French industrial engineering contractor and equipment manufacturer.
Cinq-Huitièmes and the other entities of the Eden Park group in connection with the restructuring of the liabilities of the group towards the pool of banks (7 banks including HSBC, Société Générale, BNP Paribas, Rothschild, Martin Maurel, Crédit Agricole, CIC and BPIfrance) through mandat ad hoc and subsequent conciliation proceedings (pre-insolvency workout).
Bank of America Merill Lynch as an existing lender in connection with an RCF for Casino and the consent request that Casino has prepared and submitted to the RCF lenders to switch from an unsecured to a secured financing.
Allgaier-Group, a worldwide operating automotive supplier and plant engineer, on the reorganization of the group’s financing.
Banque Themis in connection with new money financing for Groupe Primex in the course of its debt restructuring proceedings (Mandat ad hoc).
Banque Themis in connection with new money financings -- in the context of a conciliation (French work out proceeding) -- to various companies of a retail group facing a restructuring situation and subject to safeguard.
Banque Themis in connection with the distressed new money financing of Solune, a retail group owning and operating the fashion brand “Vanessa Bruno”.
Banque Themis in connection with a new money secured bridge financing to a winery estate operating several Bordeaux domains in Saint Estephe and Haut Medoc, in the course of conciliation proceedings.
Banque Themis in connection with the bridge financing of Sintertech in the framework of pre-insolvency amicable proceedings (mandat ad hoc and conciliation).
Banque Themis in connection with numerous financial restructurings involving the provision of new money financings for a variety of debtors in the fashion, manufacturing and wine sectors.
Banque Themis in connection with a new money secured bridge financing to retail luxury brand Zilli in view of facilitating the adoption of a safeguard plan for Zilli.
Bpifrance in connection with the cross-border (France – USA) restructuring of Acco group, a group of companies involved in the connected devices and internet of things area.
CACIB and a pool of banks including Société Générale, Crédit Lyonnais and Banque Populaire in connection with the restructuring and refinancing of the EMEA operations of surfwear and skatewear retailer Quiksilver through mandat ad hoc and conciliation proceedings.
Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd. (JNFL) in connection with its investment in French nuclear fuel cycle company, New Areva Holding, which is part of the global restructuring of French nuclear energy group Areva.
Sagemcom in connection with the bankruptcy of the X-Trem Group, distributor of the GO PRO cameras and products.
Altis Semiconductor and its trustees in bankruptcy in connection with its reorganization proceedings (redressement judiciaire).
Aterian Investment Partners, a New York investment fund, in the divestiture of a French subsdidiary of one of its participations and subsequent bankruptcy and prepack sale.
A pool of bank led by Crédit Agricole CIB and Crédit Agricole du Morbihan including Société Générale, Crédit Lyonnais, Arkea, BNP Paribas, Natixis and BECM in connection with the refinancing of the indebtedness of Groupe d’aucy.
The various entities of FagorBrandt, a leading group of household appliances in Europe, as debtors with respect to their cross-border insolvency proceedings.
Aurelius Capital Management in connection with the analysis of the financial indebtness of Compagnie Générale de Géophysique (CGG) in view of Aurelius investing into the bond issued by the Group.
Bpifrance in connection with the restructuring of the companies of Acco Group.
ICIG as main shareholder in connection with Calaire Chimie’s insolvency proceedings (redressement judiciaire) of Calaire Chimie in France.