LONDON-Liberty International, which owns Britain's biggest portfolio of shopping centres, plans to raise euro 855 million ($1.1 billion) through commercial mortgage backed securities against the MetroCentre.
Eurohypo, the European commercial real estate bank, is arranging the 10-year loan for Liberty International. The loan will be secured on Liberty International's largest asset by size, the 1.8-million-sf MetroCentre in Gateshead, Tyne & Wear. It will be financed through the issue by Opera Finance, MetroCentre, of a CMBS in four tranches, expected to be rated by Fitch Ratings Ltd., Moody's Investors Service Limited and Standard & Poor's Ratings Services.
The loan will replace an existing euro 1-million ($1.4-billion) syndicated loan secured on the MetroCentre, Gateshead and the Braehead shopping centre, Renfrew, Glasgow and allows Liberty International to reduce its cost of funds whilst maintaining a 10-year maturity.
This is the second CMBS funded loan secured on an asset of Liberty International and arranged by Eurohypo AG. The first, a euro 784-million ($1-billion) CMBS funded loan, by Opera Finance closed in August 2004 and was secured on the Lakeside shopping centre in Thurrock, Essex.
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