Service

Banking and Finance

Summary

Our banking and finance lawyers provide expert advice on all financial matters for leading national and international banks and financial institutions. Many of New Zealand’s major banks have us on their panel and our specialists are known for their trusted, reliable legal advice. Our lawyers also act for major corporates in their dealings with banks.

We know that finance can be a tricky field for many, so you need the best professionals to help you. Whether you are a new or existing financial institution or you are expanding or changing your business and looking for finance, facing a complicated financial situation or doing a merger or acquisition, we can offer expert, reliable guidance and support.

Key services

Lending transactions

Including property finance, syndicated lending, bilateral lending, security sharing arrangements, project finance, acquisition finance (including management buy-outs and buy-ins), negative pledge lending, factoring, mezzanine finance and cross border international financing.

Regulatory and compliance

Anti-money laundering advice, Personal Property Securities Act issues, Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act advice, lending law compliance programs for financial institutions, and review and simplification of internal banking processes.

Complex financing

Advising on matters including leveraged finance, project and property finance and structured finance and syndicated corporate facilities.

Specific business banking experience

Including lending to manufacturers and those in industries for agriculture, fisheries, maritime, viticulture and aviation.

Restructuring and insolvency

Debt recovery, securities enforcement and insolvency advice, including refinancing, restructuring, administration and liquidation.

New financial ventures and products

Establishing new financial institutions such as private financiers and advising on financial product development, preparation of template documents and training of financial institution staff.

Lending structures in New Zealand and offshore

Advising New Zealand and offshore non-bank lenders and private credit funds on appropriate lending structures into the New Zealand market. Providing foreign law legal opinions to offshore banks and legal counsel.

Key people

Work Highlights

Assisting Scales Corporation with lending facility requirements for the establishment of a joint venture in Europe for its pet food ingredients business, where Scales Corporation is the lender of development finance and working capital finance to the joint venture company.
Acting for Links Group Holdings on its establishment as a holding company to hold shares in two wine and one beer brewing companies, which included debt, private funding and shareholding restructuring.
Acting for NPD Group Limited on the funding arrangements for an MBO. The funding included super senior working capital facilities, term debt provided by an offshore fund, and a significant vendor financing arrangement.
Acting for the financiers on the provision of syndicated facilities to Bellfield Developments Limited, giving advice on the fund structure of the offshore lending entity and how to provide funding into New Zealand in the best and most tax efficient way.
Acting for a New Zealand banking group to a large commercial property investment company. The lending and security structure is by way of bi-lateral facility agreements with security sharing.