Watson, Farley & Williams (“WFW”) has advised Norddeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale (“NORD/LB”) on the acquisition financing for the purchase of a portfolio company by Caldec Holding GmbH (“Caldec”).

The WFW team provided comprehensive advice to NORD/LB on the transaction financing, which closed on 19 November.

Caldec is a holding company owned by private investors that specialises in long-term investments in profitable mid-sized German businesses. Caldec actively supports the management of its portfolio companies to help them grow into a position of market leadership.

Fieldfisher has advised the Investec Growth & Acquisition Finance team ("Investec") in relation to a senior loan facility made available primarily for the management buyout of the James Grant Group from Gresham Private Equity.

Pinsent Masons has advised HSBC Bank Plc and Lloyds Bank Plc as joint lead bookrunners, and HM Treasury as guarantor on a £231 million bond issue to assist the University of Northampton with its waterside campus development.

The bond, together with an additional lending package of £60m from the Public Works Loan Board, were the first to be guaranteed by the UK Government in the education sector, under the Infrastructure UK guarantee scheme.

White & Case LLP has advised the financial institutions on Waste Italia S.p.A.'s Senior Secured High Yield Notes issue and super senior revolving credit facility (RCF).

The Firm advised Jefferies International Limited, as sole bookrunning manager, on the Rule 144A/Regulation S issue of €200 million, 10.5 percent Senior Secured Notes due 2019 and BNP Paribas, as original lender, sole arranger and agent, on the €15 million super senior RCF.

Gide advised Banca IMI S.p.A, Banco Santander S.A, BNP Paribas, Lloyds Bank plc, HSBC Bank plc, Mediobanca-Banca di Credito Finanziario SpA and The Royal Bank of Scotland as joint lead managers on the issuance by BNP Paribas Cardif of 1 billion euros undated subordinated notes, admitted to trading on the Euro MTF market of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange. Allen & Overy advised BNP Paribas Cardif.

Gide's team was led by Hubert du Vignaux (partner), assisted by Théophile Strebelle and Aude-Laurène Dourdain.

Viario A31 issues 10-year bonds for €47 million, the longest maturity on the market so far.  The Alternative Fixed-Income Market (MARF) has admitted to trading a €47 million bond issue launched by Viario A31, the concessionaire of the Bonete-Alicante section of the A31 highway.

The senior secured bonds have a nominal value of €100,000 per unit and a 10-year term maturing on November 24, 2024. This is MARF’s first project bond issue, with the longest maturity so far.

Shearman & Sterling advised managers Credit Suisse Securities (Europe) Limited, J.P. Morgan Securities plc, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. and Banco Santander, S.A., as joint global coordinators and joint bookrunners, Goldman Sachs International, Morgan Stanley & Co. International plc and UBS Limited, as joint bookrunners, in connection with the €3.1 billion sale of shares in Endesa, S.A. by Enel Energy Europe, S.L.U. (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Enel S.p.A.). The offering is one of the largest equity offerings in Europe in 2014.

Clifford Chance is advising Santander with its strategic investment in world leading mobile money business, Monitise PLC.

Santander has subscribed for 5.5% of the existing issued share capital of Monitise, alongside other investors, in an aggregate share issue by Monitise of 8.2% of its existing share capital.  In connection with its subscription, Santander and Telefonica (another strategic investor participating in the transaction) will have the right to jointly nominate a single Non-Executive Director to be appointed by the Monitise Board.

Cuatrecasas, Gonçalves Pereira has advised Banco Santander, BBVA, Credit Suisse and JP Morgan, the joint global coordinators of Enel’s 22% public offering of Endesa shares, targeted at Spanish and international institutional investors, and Spanish retail investors.

The transaction raised €3.132 billion from over 232 million shares priced at €13.50 per share.

Pinsent Masons has advised Legal & General’s retirement business on a £2.5 billion partial buyout with the TRW Pension Scheme. The deal will see these liabilities removed from TRW Automotive’s balance sheet, insuring over 22,000 of the Scheme’s pensioners. This is the largest pension buyout in the UK to date and follows Legal & General’s £3.0 billion bulk annuity buy-in arrangement with the ICI Pension Fund.