Shearman & Sterling represented Jefferies International Limited and Jefferies LLC, which acted as the sole manager and placement agent, respectively with respect to the offering by Emma Delta Finance plc of its €250,000,000 8.50% First-Lien Senior Secured Notes due 2017 and €150,000,000 12.00% Second-Lien Senior Secured Notes due 2017. The proceeds of the offering will be used to fund the privatization of a controlling stake of Hellenic Football Prognostics Organisation S.A. ("OPAP S.A."), which Emma Delta Hellenic Holdings Limited has agreed to purchase from the Government of Greece for approximately €650 million.
OPAP S.A. is the leading gaming company in Greece and the exclusive operator of all numerical lottery and sports and betting games in Greece, excluding casinos and horseracing. The sale of the 33% of OPAP S.A. by the Greek Government constitutes Greece's first major privatization.
Apostolos Gkoutzinis, capital markets partner in London, commented, "We were pleased to represent Jefferies in this ground-breaking transaction. We were uniquely placed to carry out this mandate, as it required a combination of skills, including high-yield execution, margin loan structuring, secured financing and familiarity with the Greek legal system. It was also an important milestone in the increasingly strong relationship with Jefferies' leveraged finance team globally and in Europe."
The Shearman & Sterling team was led by partner Apostolos Gkoutzinis (London-Capital Markets) and included counsel David Dixter (London-Capital Markets) and Gabrielle Wong (London-Finance), and associates Joji Ozawa (London-Capital Markets), Kara Major (London-Capital Markets), Dimosthenis Papanikolaou (London-Capital Markets), Joseph Payne (London-Capital Markets), Chris White (London-Finance) and Monsiree Jirasarunya (London-Finance).
Partner Patrick Clancy (London-Finance) advised on finance matters. Associate Jeffrey Tate (Washington DC-Tax) advised on tax matters. Trainee solicitors Louise Benski and Sarah Moir-Porteous also provided assistance.
