Aequo advises Epicentr Group on securing of a USD 70 million loan from BSTBD

Aequo has acted as Ukrainian law counsel to Epicentr Group, a Ukrainian market leader in agribusiness, construction material manufacturing, DIY retail and distribution, in connection with the attraction of an up-to USD 70 million multicurrency secured loan from Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB).

BSTDB's financing will support the Group’s agriculture business programme for 2019-2021 anticipating, in particular, the construction of three new grain silos and the modernisation of four existing grain silos and the purchase of agricultural machinery.

Yulia Kyrpa, Aequo's partner and head of Banking and Finance, commented on the transaction: “We are honoured to have been given the opportunity to assist Epicentr with this landmark transaction, which is the first and undoubtedly not the last Group's financing extended by an international financial institution. It will definitely strengthen Epicentr's position as an agriculture producer and we are lucky to be involved in this success story.’’

Epicentr Group is one of the largest Ukrainian private groups of companies, and the leader in the Do-It-Yourself industry and retail market. The Group operates the largest retail network of 58 hypermarkets in Ukraine and enjoys net sales exceeding EUR 1,35 billion annually. Epicentr is also a leading agricultural producer in Ukraine, operating on a land bank of 110,000 hectares and producing 600,000 tons of crops.

The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) is an international financial institution established by Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Turkey, and Ukraine. The BSTDB headquarters are in Thessaloniki, Greece. BSTDB supports economic development and regional co-operation by providing loans, credit lines, equity and guarantees for projects and trade financing in the public and private sectors in its member countries. The authorised capital of the Bank is EUR 3.45 billion. BSTDB is rated long-term ‘A-’ by Standard and Poor’s and ‘A2’ by Moody’s.