Aequo advises Raiffeisen Bank International on financing for Epicentr Group
AEQUO has acted for Raiffeisen Bank International AG (RBI) on extension of ECA-covered finance in the amount of approximately EUR 18 million for Epicentr Group, being the leading Ukrainian DIY retailer and one of the largest agriculture producers.
RBI's loan will be utilised by the borrower to finance purchasing modern grain storage systems from Convex International GmbH, a well-known German manufacturer focused on development and implementation of innovative solutions for agro-industrial businesses, to support Epicentr in further improvement of its operational effectiveness. The facility is covered by an export guarantee issued by Euler Hermes Aktiengesellschaft, which served as the export credit agency (ECA).
Ukrainian law advice, which anticipated assistance with the deal structuring and negotiating transaction documentation, has been provided by Aequo team comprised of associate Olesia Mashtaler, counsel Denis Kulgavyi and Yulia Kyrpa, partner and head of Banking & Finance.
«This is a third consecutive export financing extended by RBI to Epicentr, and we are extremely happy to be involved in writing this story of successful partnership and trust among international and Ukrainian businesses", comments Yulia Kyrpa.
RBI operates a banking network in Central and Eastern Europe, where 13 markets of the region are covered by subsidiary banks. Additionally, the group comprises numerous other financial service providers in leasing, asset management, and mergers and acquisitions.
RBI is Austria's second-largest bank with a balance sheet total of €146 billion. It has approximately 47,000 employees and services 16.4 million customers through more than 2,100 business outlets.
Since 2016, agricultural activity has been one of the most important and potential directions developed by Epicentr-K LLC. Epicenter Agro consolidates the production assets of the Epicenter K group. The company cultivates 160,000 hectares of land in six regions, is in the TOP-7 largest latifundists of Ukraine by land bank area and in the TOP-5 largest private operators in the domestic market of linear elevators - 15 elevator complexes with a total storage capacity of over 1.5 million tons.