DC Advisory advised Looping and Ergon Capital Partners on refinancing

Looping is the leading European operator of regional leisure parks with a portfolio of 14 parks across Europe.

Supported by Ergon Capital Partners since March 2016, Looping has demonstrated its ability to grow both organically and externally with the successful acquisitions of 7 leisure parks over the last 6 years, among which the well-known Zoo de La Flèche in 2017.

In March 2018, DC Advisory was mandated for the refinancing of Looping’s existing unitranche.

Following a competitive process involving a restricted number of banks, a 1st out / 2nd out structure has been raised with the existing unitranche provider Alcentra and two new banks, Bank of Ireland and Société Générale.

This transaction is the first 1st out / 2nd out refinancing structured in France, and includes undrawn facilities to support the group’s future expansion.

Unitranche cost is reduced by the addition of a super senior tranche of drawn bank debt.

This structure enables Looping to benefit from the best of both worlds: a better flexibility and a cost reduction while increasing the company’s firepower through an acquisition facility.

This transaction illustrates DC Advisory’s expertise and innovation capabilities to structure tailor-made debt solutions to meet its clients’ needs.