Our client was an UHNW individual resident in the EU looking to buy a mixed-use property in London for £4.2m. The property contained a retail unit which was not trading during the pandemic. The property was to be purchased through a UK company which was ultimately owned by the client’s Swiss company.
We were able to secure a facility for our client on very competitive terms despite the complexity of the structure and the volatility of the market. The deal was secured without the need for a personal guarantee and completed from inception to drawdown in less than 6 weeks.
The client faced two main issues. Firstly, very few banks could lend to the complex company structure. Additionally, all the client’s assets were held in company structures overseas making it difficult to verify the client’s HNW status without providing detailed translated company accounts which would have involved a lot of time and expense.
The second issue was the fact that very few banks were lending on mixed use commercial properties due to the uncertainty surrounding the hospitality sector.
We approached a private bank with which we have an excellent working relationship. Based on the strength of the initial proposal with supporting evidence from international accounts, solicitors and advisors the bank was happy to proceed without detailed translated accounts.
Furthermore, the bank was happy to lend without formal personal guarantees and crucially without the caveat that the client deposited a significant sum of assets under management.
Although the commercial unit of the property was not trading the bank was happy to proceed by simply holding a year’s interest payments deposit.
The client now has an established relationship with a bank that can finance a varied and diverse portfolio of commercial properties.
The clients funding line remains in place for the swift purchase of future commercial properties.