June 25, 2025
Willkie advised an ad hoc group of noteholders on the recapitalisation of the Lowell group, one of Europe’s largest credit management companies with operations in the UK, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Denmark, Norway, Finland, and Sweden. Perella Weinberg provided financial advice to the ad hoc group. The Lowell group’s principal shareholders are private equity firm Permira and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board.
Prior to the recapitalisation, Lowell’s capital structure included £1,629 million of euro and Sterling senior secured notes maturing in 2025 and 2026. The recapitalisation, which was implemented consensually, involved the partial redemption of the existing notes, the reinstatement of the remaining notes into longer dated euro senior secured notes and the euro equivalent of £250 million PIK notes issued by a holding company in the group and the provision of EUR 250 million of ‘1.5 lien’ new money notes. The new money notes will be used to partially prepay the group’s existing revolving credit facilities and for debt management. The recapitalisation also involved a significant tightening of the covenants package supporting the reinstated notes, which will also benefit the new money notes, and the appointment of a non-executive director to the group’s main decision making board.
Willkie’s cross-disciplinary and jurisdictional deal team was led by partners Graham Lane and Jason Taylor, associates Antonia Pegg, Ifrath Hussain, Chiraag Thadani and Amy Kidd and trainee solicitors Theodora Oancea and Xanthe Gabrielle-Beacher from the London Restructuring team and partner Wolfram Prusko and associate Joachim Gloeckler from the German Restructuring team. Capital markets advice was provided by partners Jennifer Tait and Henrietta de Salis and associates David Adler, Snaebjorn Olafsson and Alejandro Albinana in London and partner Simon Weiss in Germany. Corporate finance advice was provided by partner Daniel Gendron, counsel Timothy Sawyer and associate Oliver Salvador in London and counsel Maximilian Mayer and associates Philipp Steinhausen and Jannis Strotmann in Germany. Tax advice was provided by partner Jane Scobie and associate Scott Wallace-Cotter in London, counsel Catherine Harrington in New York, and counsel Wulf Kring and associate Marcel Seemaier in Germany.
Prior to the recapitalisation, Lowell’s capital structure included £1,629 million of euro and Sterling senior secured notes maturing in 2025 and 2026. The recapitalisation, which was implemented consensually, involved the partial redemption of the existing notes, the reinstatement of the remaining notes into longer dated euro senior secured notes and the euro equivalent of £250 million PIK notes issued by a holding company in the group and the provision of EUR 250 million of ‘1.5 lien’ new money notes. The new money notes will be used to partially prepay the group’s existing revolving credit facilities and for debt management. The recapitalisation also involved a significant tightening of the covenants package supporting the reinstated notes, which will also benefit the new money notes, and the appointment of a non-executive director to the group’s main decision making board.
Willkie’s cross-disciplinary and jurisdictional deal team was led by partners Graham Lane and Jason Taylor, associates Antonia Pegg, Ifrath Hussain, Chiraag Thadani and Amy Kidd and trainee solicitors Theodora Oancea and Xanthe Gabrielle-Beacher from the London Restructuring team and partner Wolfram Prusko and associate Joachim Gloeckler from the German Restructuring team. Capital markets advice was provided by partners Jennifer Tait and Henrietta de Salis and associates David Adler, Snaebjorn Olafsson and Alejandro Albinana in London and partner Simon Weiss in Germany. Corporate finance advice was provided by partner Daniel Gendron, counsel Timothy Sawyer and associate Oliver Salvador in London and counsel Maximilian Mayer and associates Philipp Steinhausen and Jannis Strotmann in Germany. Tax advice was provided by partner Jane Scobie and associate Scott Wallace-Cotter in London, counsel Catherine Harrington in New York, and counsel Wulf Kring and associate Marcel Seemaier in Germany.
