Osborne Clarke has advised long-standing client The UNITE Group plc (UNITE) on its £100 million Firm Placing and Placing and Open Offer (Issue) announced today. The Issue has been fully underwritten by joint bookrunners J.P. Morgan Cazenove, Numis Securities and Jefferies.

UNITE, which is the UK's leading developer and manager of student accommodation, intends to use half of the net proceeds of the Issue to fund an acceleration of its highly targeted regional development programme in select key university towns and cities and the other half to acquire new units in The UNITE Student Accommodation Fund to increase its stake from 16% to 22%. Osborne Clarke also advised UNITE on its £52 million placing in June 2013 and £90 million retail bond issue in late 2012. The Osborne Clarke team was led by Mark Wesker and Jonathan King, assisted by James Davies and Fiona Mason.