Grosvenor unveils new Liverpool One lenders
The Grosvenor Liverpool Fund has secured £385m of refinanced debt for the Liverpool One retail-led scheme, valuing the 1.6m sq ft asset at £650m.
The five-year deal replaces the original funding put in place six years ago to cover both the development phase and the initial period of trading.
The banks involved in the new package were Royal Bank of Scotland, Eurohypo, Dekabank and Credit Agricole banks.
Dekabank and Credit Agricole are new lenders to the scheme and arrive following an oversubscribed tendering process.
The existing loan was due to mature in January 2012. The loan to value of the new facility is around 60%, valuing Liverpool One at £650m.
Chris Taite, fund manager at Grosvenor Liverpool Fund, said: "We have been in discussion with the banks since early 2010 to secure this refinancing, never an easy task for this size of loan, even in a strong market.
"Liverpool One's quality and demonstrable success convinced our new lenders. As I hand over to my successor as fund manager, Sarah-Jane Curtis, [moved from Grosvenor's London Estate team] it is great to have such a vote of confidence in the future of the asset and the fund."
Liverpool One is 98% let and turnover in Q3 2010 was up 18% on the same period of 2009.
Grosvenor owns 23.5% of the Grosvenor Liverpool Fund, alongside other investors including Hermes, Liverpool Victoria and ADIA.
