Cruise and ECA finance

• Citi and a syndicate of lenders on a US$1.7bn SACE-backed financing package for two high-end passenger cruise vessels for Crystal Cruises.
• Banco Santander and a syndicate of lenders on a multi-billion BpiFAE-backed cruise financing for two new passenger cruise vessels, "World Class 3" and "World Class 4", for MSC Cruises.
• Société Générale and a syndicate of lenders on a multi-billion BpiFAE-backed cruise financing for five new passenger cruise vessels for MSC Cruises.
• BNP Paribas and a syndicate of lenders on over $7bn of SACE-backed financing for fourteen new cruise vessels for Viking Ocean Cruises.
• Citi and a syndicate of lenders on a €450m SACE-backed export credit term loan facility in respect of one ultra-luxury yacht to be operated by a luxury travel brand.
• Citi, as mandated lead arranger, co-ordinator and bookrunner, agent and security trustee, on a strategically important $500m term and revolving credit facility for luxury travel and leisure company Abercrombie & Kent - Deal of the Year, Marine Money.
• UniCredit S.p.A. and a syndicate of lenders on a US$1.5bn and €590m SACE-backed export credit financing for three cruise vessels for Virgin Voyages – TXF Perfect 10 Deal of the Year
• J.P. Morgan and a syndicate of lenders on over €2bn of BpiFAE-backed financings for two new cruise vessels for Royal Caribbean.
• KfW IPEX-Bank GmbH and a syndicate of lenders on the financing of four river cruise ships to be constructed by MV Werften Wismar GmbH for the Genting group by way of a German Hermes supported export credit facility.
• Citi on a syndicate of lenders on a significant number of receivable purchase financing and post-delivery financing for Royal Caribbean totalling in excess of €6bn.
• Banco Santander and a syndicate of lenders on a €4bn defence financing for a European sovereign nation.
• UniCredit and a syndicate of lenders on a €3b SACE-backed export credit financing for twenty-eight helicopters and associated equipment for the Qatar Ministry of Defence.
• The lenders on a $100m untied "SACE Push" export credit financing.

Structured leasing

• Various lenders (including Crédit Agricole and SMBC) in relation to Japanese Operating Lease with Call Option (JOLCO) transactions totalling in excess of $2bn involving over 25 vessels, including three "Marine Money Deals of the Year".
• A leading shipping company in relation to JOLCO transactions totalling in excess of $1.3bn involving over 13 vessels.
• A leading shipping company in relation to various finance lease arrangements with Chinese lessors totalling in excess of $1.2bn involving 12 vessels.
• A transportation fund in relation to various finance lease arrangements with Chinese lessors totalling in excess of $900m involving six vessels, including one "Marine Money Deal of the Year".

Other notable transactions

• Carnival Corporation & plc, one of the world's largest travel companies with a portfolio of nine of the world's leading cruise lines and operations in North America, Australia, Europe and Asia, on its response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including English law aspects of over US$10bn of capital markets issuances.
• Various lenders on the implementation of ECA-backed cruise debt holiday arrangements for a number of leading cruise operators in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including Carnival, Genting Hong Kong, Royal Caribbean, Virgin Voyages and MSC Cruises.  The deferrals generated an additional $2.5bn of liquidity for the industry during a time of unprecedented crisis.
• Various lenders on the implementation of enhanced credit support packages for ECA-backed transactions involving a leading cruise line, including the implementation of a substantial subsidiary guarantee package and complex intercreditor arrangements with senior bondholders and lenders.
• KfW IPEX-Bank and other lenders of Genting Hong Kong on the $2.6bn restructuring of the Genting Hong Kong Group (which closed in 2021) and the subsequent insolvency (from January 2022 onwards) of the Genting Hong Kong Group. We advised in respect of the ECA-backed facilities for the ocean cruise vessels Global One (under construction and subsequently sold to Disney Cruise Line, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company) and World Dream, and the river cruise vessels "Crystal Bach", "Crystal Mahler", "Crystal Debussy" and "Crystal Ravel".
• KfW IPEX-Bank and the lenders on the post-delivery financing for "Crystal Endeavor", a 200-passenger luxury polar-class expedition cruise vessel, and the subsequent sale of the ship to Royal Caribbean (and associated financing for the ship's purchase), after the ship was arrested in Gibraltar following the insolvency of the Genting Hong Kong Group.
• Carnival Corporation & plc, one of the world's largest travel companies with a portfolio of nine of the world's leading cruise lines and operations in North America, Australia, Europe and Asia, on its response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including English law aspects of over US$20bn of capital markets issuances.