Clifford Chance has advised the leading banks on the signing of commitment documentation to refinance Stabilus S.A.'s 7.75 per cent senior secured notes due 2018 and its EUR 25,000,000 revolving credit facility.

Stabilus S.A. designs, manufactures and distributes spring systems for the automotive industry, furniture applications and open-close systems and despite its listing on the Frankfurt stock exchange earlier this year, remains majority owned by Triton.

Deacons recently advised the sole sponsor, China Merchants Securities (HK) Co., Limited and the underwriters, in relation to the Main Board IPO of Canvest Environmental Protection Group Company Limited.

Launched on December 15th 2014, the IPO is expected to raise up to HK$1.165 billion (subject to the exercise of over-allotment option).  

Clifford Chance advised a group of financiers composed of development financial institutions (African Development Bank, International Finance Corporation and The Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund Limited), a commercial bank (Habib Bank Limited) and the Danish export credit agency (Eksport Kredit Fonden) on a USD300 million project financing arranged by Habib Bank Limited for the design, construction, development, operation and maintenance of a greenfield cement manufacturing plant (and associated facilities) and the exploitation of limestone and clay quarry mines by Nyumba Ya Akiba SA in

The Dubai International Financial Centre Authority (DIFCA) announced on Sunday 14 December 2014, that the Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, has signed into DIFC law a new statute that provides for the effectiveness under DIFC law of the netting of obligations under contracts such as derivatives master agreements.

White & Case LLP has advised a consortium of banks including, among others, CIBC, Crédit Agricole CIB, ING Bank, SEB AG and Scotiabank as arrangers of the financing for the acquisition of Erdgasversorgungsgesellschaft Thüringen-Sachsen mbH (EVG) and its gas distribution network.

ING Bank N.V., advised by leading international law firm Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW”), has arranged a US$150 million facility for the MODEX/Euro Offshore group, a lessor of offshore container boxes, in order to refinance existing indebtedness and provide working capital.

Shareholders in BANCA ARNER SA, Lugano (Arner) and IXE Capital AG, Zurich (IXE) have entered into a share purchase agreement pursuant to which IXE purchases all remaining registered shares (equal to 90.2%) in Arner. IXE already holds 9.8% in Arner. The consummation of the share purchase agreement is planned to occur in 2015 upon receipt of the necessary regulatory approvals.

Erste Group successfully placed a subordinated bond (tier 2) with a volume of USD 500 million to institutional investors. They were advised by the law firm Wolf Theiss.

Due to the structure of the notes, Erste Group can account the issue as supplementary capital (tier 2). The notes provide for an ongoing interest adjustment after five and a half years which will take place if the notes are not redeemed by Erste Group at this time.

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has advised the underwriters on the US$1.17bn rights issue of PICC Property and Casualty Company Limited (PICC P&C).

PICC P&C, the Chinese state-controlled and China’s leading non-life insurer, has issued around 397.8m H-shares at HK$7.46 per share and 844.6m domestic shares at RMB5.92 per share. PICC P&C has raised a total of RMB7.24bn (US$1.17bn) from the rights issue.

Freshfields advised the underwriters, CICC, HSBC and Goldman Sachs, on the Hong Kong and US law aspects of the transaction.

Khanty-Mansi Bank Otkrytie PJSC announced that it had successfully closed a second deal on the securitization of the mortgage portfolio supported by the Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners’ Banking and Finance, Capital Markets team.